• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
• /
• v.38 no.1
• /
• pp.64-69
• /
• 2010

It has been known that propolis possesses anti-infective, anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidative properties. Although antifungal activity of Propolis has already been demonstrated, very few studies has been conducted for action mechanism and its spectrum on fungi. We found that ethanol extract of propolis (EEP) inhibited in vitro translation. Since we also observed the growth inhibition of pathogenic fungi and anti-oxidative properties preliminarily, we try to see where those properties come from. Therefore we extracted the EEP further with chloroform, ethyl acetate and butanol. When their fractions were examined for the growth inhibition of Candida albicans, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Candida glabrata, Candida lusitaniae, Cryptococcos neoformans, chloroform fraction exhibited the highest anti-fungal as well as anti-oxidative properties. Similarly the chloroform fraction showed highest translation-inhibiting activities among the various Propolis fractions. These data indicate that those properties might come from similar compounds.

• Research in Plant Disease
• /
• v.22 no.1
• /
• pp.1-8
• /
• 2016

Elsinoe fawcettii causing citrus scab was suppressed by rhizobacterial strains such as Burkholderia gladioli MRL408-3, TRH423-3 and Pseudomonas fluorescens THJ609-3, TRH415-2 having antifungal activity. The leaf surface of Satsuma mandarin, which was pre-treated with the rhizobacterial strains, was observed by a scanning electron microscope (SEM) after inoculation with E. fawcettii. The number of lesions was reduced on the leaves pre-treated with the rhizobacterial strains compared to those of untreated leaves. Especially, the lesions numbers was apparently reduced on the leaves pre-treated with B. gladioli MRL408-3. The observation by SEM revealed that not only the germination rate but also the length of germ tube of the pathogen were decreased on the rhizobacterial strains pre-treated leaves. These inhibition of the fungal growth was more strongly expressed on the leaves pre-treated with commercial fungicide imibenconazole, by which the lesions was rarely found on the leaves. Based on these results, it was suggested that rhizobacterial strains may inhibit the germination and growth of the E. fawcettii on the surface of citrus leaves, resulting in decrease of disease severity.

• Korean Journal of Plant Tissue Culture
• /
• v.21 no.5
• /
• pp.253-275
• /
• 1994

Many flowering plants possess genetically controlled self -incompatibility (SI) system that prevents inbreeding and promotes outcrosses. SI is usually controlled by a single, multiallelic S-locus. In gametophytically controlled system, SI results when the S-allele of the pollen is matched by one of the two S-alleles in the style, while in the sporophytic system self-incompatible reaction occurs by the interaction between the pistil genotype and genotype of, not the pollen, but the pollen parent In the former system the self-incompatible phenotype of pollen is determined by the haploid genome of the pollen itself but in the latter the pollen phenotype is governed by the genotype of the pollen parent along with the occurrence of either to-dominant or dominant/recessive allelic interactions. In the sporophytic type the inhibition reaction occurs within minutes following pollen-stigma contact, the incompatible pollen grains usually failing to germinate, whereas in gametophytic system pollen tube inhibition takes place during growth in the transmitting tissue of the style. Recognition and rejection of self pollen are the result of interaction between the S-locus protein in the pistil and the pollen protein. In the gametophytic SI the S-associated glycoprotein which is similar to the fungal ribonuclease in structure and function are localized at the intercellular matrix in the transmitting tissue of the style, with the highest concentration in the collar of the stigma, while in the sporophytic SI deposit of abundant S-locus specific glycoprotein (SLSG).is detected in the cell wall of stigmatic papillae of the open flowers. In the gametophytic system S-gene is expressed mostly at the stigmatic collar the upper third of the style length and in the pollen after meiosis. On the other hand, in the sporophytic SI S-glycoprotein gene is expressed in the papillar cells of the stigma as well as in e sporophytic tape is cells of anther wall. Recognition and rejection of self pollen in the gametophytic type is the reaction between the ribonuclease in the transmitting tissue of the style and the protein in the cytoplasm of pollen tube, whereas in the sporophytic system the inhibition of selfed pollen is caused by the interaction between the Sycoprotein in the wall of stigmatic papillar cell and the tapetum-origin protein deposited on the outer wall of the pollen grain. The claim that the S-allele-associated proteins are involved in recognition and rejection of self pollen has been made merely based on indirect evidence. Recently it has been verified that inhibition of synthesis of S$_3$ protein in Petunia inflata plants of S$_2$S$_3$ genotype by the antisense S$_3$ gene resulted in failure of the transgenic plant to reject S$_3$ pollen and that expression of the transgenic encoding S$_3$ protein in the S$_1$S$_2$ genotype confers on the transgenic plant the ability to reject S$_3$ pollen. These finding Provide direct evidence that S-proteins control the s elf-incompatibility behavior of the pistil.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.23 no.6
• /
• pp.856-863
• /
• 2013

Application of rhizospheric fungi is an effective and environmentally friendly method of improving plant growth and controlling many plant diseases. The current study was aimed to identify phytohormone-producing fungi from soil, to understand their roles in sesame plant growth, and to control Fusarium disease. Three predominant fungi (PNF1, PNF2, and PNF3) isolated from the rhizospheric soil of peanut plants were screened for their growth-promoting efficiency on sesame seedlings. Among these isolates, PNF2 significantly increased the shoot length and fresh weight of seedlings compared with controls. Analysis of the fungal culture filtrate showed a higher concentration of indole acetic acid in PNF2 than in the other isolates. PNF2 was identified as Penicillium sp. on the basis of phylogenetic analysis of ITS sequence similarity. The in vitro biocontrol activity of Penicillium sp. against Fusarium sp. was exhibited by a 49% inhibition of mycelial growth in a dual culture bioassay and by hyphal injuries as observed by scanning electron microscopy. In addition, greenhouse experiments revealed that Fusarium inhibited growth in sesame plants by damaging lipid membranes and reducing protein content. Co-cultivation with Penicillium sp. mitigated Fusarium-induced oxidative stress in sesame plants by limiting membrane lipid peroxidation, and by increasing the protein concentration, levels of antioxidants such as total polyphenols, and peroxidase and polyphenoloxidase activities. Thus, our findings suggest that Penicillium sp. is a potent plant growth-promoting fungus that has the ability to ameliorate damage caused by Fusarium infection in sesame cultivation.

• Food preservation and processing industry
• /
• v.7 no.1
• /
• pp.9-18
• /
• 2008

The health benefits of garlic (Allium sativum L.) are derived from a wide variety of components and from the different ways it is administered. The known health benefits of garlic include cardiovascular protective effects, stimulation of immune function, reduction of blood glucose level, protection against microbial, viral and fungal infections, as well as anticancer effects. In the present study, it was examined the effects of water extract of A. sativum (WEAS) on the growth of cultured human tumor cells in order to investigate its anti-proliferative mechanism. Treatment of WEAS to tumor cells resulted in the growth inhibition, especially in leukemia cells, which was associated with induction of G2/M arrest of the cell cycle and apoptosis. In order to further explore the critical events leading to apoptosis in WEAS-treated U937 human leukemia cells, the following effects of WEAS on components of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway were examined: generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), alteration of the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and the expression changes of Bcl-2 and IAP family proteins. The cytotoxic effect of WEAS was mediated by its induction of apoptosis as characterized by the occurrence of DNA ladders, apoptotic bodies and chromosome condensation in U937 cells. The WEAS-induced apoptosis in U937 cells was correlated with the generation of intracellular ROS, collapse of MMP, activation of caspase-3 and down-regulation of anti-apoptotic proteins. The quenching of ROS generation with antioxidant N-acetyl-L-cysteine conferred significant protection against WEAS-elicited ROS generation, caspase-3 activation, G2/M arrest and apoptosis. In conclusion, the present study reveals that the cellular ROS generation plays a pivotal role in the initiation of WEAS-triggered apoptotic death in U937 cells.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
• /
• v.47 no.4
• /
• pp.1071-1081
• /
• 2020

Essential oils (EOs) have been shown to be plant-extracted antimicrobial agents. However, there are limited studies investigating the efficacy of EOs against pathogens. Among them, tea tree oil (TTO) is extracted from Melaleuca alternifolia, which is also used as an antifungal agent. In this study, the effect of TTO was investigated on the suppression of melon powdery mildew caused by Podosphaera xanthii and tomato leaf mold disease caused by Passalora fulva. Both powdery mildew and leaf mold diseases were significantly suppressed by a spray of TTO. Eighty percent of powdery mildew and 81% of leaf mold disease of the control value were suppressed by 0.5% TTO liquid, when sprayed 3 times every 7 days on the melon and tomato leaves. Inhibition of mycelial growth was also greatly affected by different concentrations of TTO against four different fungal pathogens. Ninety-eight percent of Pseudocercospora fuligena, 97% of P. fulva, 95% of Botrytis cinerea, and 94% of Phytophthora infestans mycelial growth were inhibited by 0.2% to 1.0% of TTO contained in plate media, respectively. However, phytotoxicity in plants by the TTO treatments was revealed when melon and tomato leaves were sprayed with a 1% and 2% concentration of TTO, respectively. Therefore, our findings show that TTO has high antifungal effects against various plant pathogens that occur during crop cultivation. We also suggest that when applying TTO to plant leaves, it is necessary to establish an accurate treatment concentration for different crops.

• Journal of Sericultural and Entomological Science
• /
• v.48 no.2
• /
• pp.68-72
• /
• 2006

The hemolmyph and whole body of insect, Bombyx mori, Allomyrina dichotoma and Neotocia brevitarsi, conspicuously inhibited the mycelial growth of several plant pathogenic fungi. The hemolymph of 1087 strain among the 16 strains of B. mori has inhibition activities against the 3 species of fungi, Alternaria panax, Collctotrichum gloeosporioides, and Pyricularia oryzae. The whole body of B. mori was more effective than the hemolymph as a inhibitor on fungi growth. The antifungal activity of B. mori was variable to the fungi species. In addition, A. dichotoma and N. brevitarsi showed antifungal activities against the same fungi as did B. mori. These data showed that the insect has potent antifungal activity. Whereas, the level of activities were differ according to the fungal species. This finding underlines that the possibility of the insect can be use of the agent as a inhibitor against the plant pathogenic fungi.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
• /
• v.47 no.4
• /
• pp.417-425
• /
• 2019

Biocontrol agents (BCAs) are widely used to protect plants from diverse biotic and abiotic stresses in agricultural and ecological fields. Among the various microbes, many subspecies of the gram-positive genus, Bacillus, have been successfully industrialized as eco-friendly biological pesticides and fertilizers. In the current study, we demonstrated that Bacillus thuringiensis C25 exhibited antagonistic effects on the mycelial growth of Rosellinia necatrix, a fungal phytopathogen. Scanning electron microscopy analysis revealed that B. thuringiensis C25 degraded the cell wall structures of R. necatrix mycelia. In the functional genomic analysis of B. thuringiensis C25, we annotated 5,683 genes and selected the gene sets that potentially encoded fungal cell wall degrading enzymes (CWDEs). The growth inhibition effects on R. necatrix were highly correlated with the transcriptional activity of the mycelial cell wall degrading genes of B. thuringiensis C25. The transcript levels of CWDEs, including CshiA, B, and Glycos_transf_2 genes in B. thuringiensis C25, were enhanced following co-cultivation with R. necatrix. In conclusion, our study suggested that B. thuringiensis C25 could serve as a suitable candidate for controlling R. necatrix and could facilitate elucidating the mechanisms underlying the antifungal activities of BCAs against phytopathogens.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• v.44 no.2
• /
• pp.287-290
• /
• 2015

Antifungal activities of pomegranate were investigated. Seventy percent ethanol extracts of seeds, peels, and whole fruits of pomegranate showed similar antifungal activities against Candida albicans in liquid media, whereas extract of whole fruit showed relatively high antifungal activity in solid media. When 70% ethanol extracts were fractionated sequentially with chloroform and ethyl acetate, ethyl acetate fraction exhibited the highest anti-fungal activities against C. albicans. Ethyl acetate fractions of whole fruits and peel portions showed at least 36% and 25% growth against C. albicans, Candida glabrata, Candida tropicalis, and Candida lusitaniae in liquid media, respectively. These results indicate that pomegranate contains antifungal compounds soluble with organic solvents.

• KSBB Journal
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.214-219
• /
• 1998

Polymerase chain reaction(PCR) was conducted to obtain the gene encoding glucose oxidase(GOD) from Aspergillus niger(ATCC 2110) and the DNA sequence determined was coincided with published GOD sequence from A. niger. Recombinant transforming vector containing GOD and hygromycin B(hyg.B) resistant gene(hph) was constructed and used for further transformation of A. niger ATCC 2110. Selectivity of hyg.B against A. niger differed depending on which media were used i.e., nutrient-rich media such as potato dextrose agar(PDA) and complete medium(CM) showed only 50% growth inhibition at 400 $\mu$m ml$^-1$ of hyg.B while the minimal media inhibited mycelial growth completely at 200 $\mu$m ml$^-1$ of hyg.B. Twenty to sixty putative transformants were isolated from the hyg.B-containing minimal top agar, transferred successively onto alternating selective and nonselective media for a mitotic stability of hyg.B resistance and, then, single-spored. Among the stable transformants, the transformant(GOD1-6) grown by flask culture showed the considerable increase of extracellular GOD activity, which was estimated to the degree of 50% - 100% comparing to that of wild type. Transformation of tGOD1-6 was resulted from integration of the vectors into heterologous as well as homologous regions of the A. niger genome. Southern blot analysis revealed that there were two independent integrations of vector into fungal genome and one into the GOD gene due to homologous recombination. In addition, GOD activity and sodium gluconate production when tGOD1-6 was fed-batch fermented were enhanced 11 fold and 2.25 fold, respectively, compared to that of the wild type.