• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.794-808
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• 2019

Bacillus velezensis strain WRN014 was isolated from banana fields in Hainan, China. Bacillus velezensis is an important member of the plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) which can enhance plant growth and control soil-borne disease. The complete genome of Bacillus velezensis WRN014 was sequenced by combining Illumina Hiseq 2500 system and Pacific Biosciences SMRT high-throughput sequencing technologies. Then, the genome of Bacillus velezensis WRN014, together with 45 other completed genome sequences of the Bacillus velezensis strains, were comparatively studied. The genome of Bacillus velezensis WRN014 was 4,063,541bp in length and contained 4,062 coding sequences, 9 genomic islands and 13 gene clusters. The results of comparative genomic analysis provide evidence that (i) The 46 Bacillus velezensis strains formed 2 obviously closely related clades in phylogenetic trees. (ii) The pangenome in this study is open and is increasing with the addition of new sequenced genomes. (iii) Analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) revealed local diversification of the 46 Bacillus velezensis genomes. Surprisingly, SNPs were not evenly distributed throughout the whole genome. (iv) Analysis of gene clusters revealed that rich gene clusters spread over Bacillus velezensis strains and some gene clusters are conserved in different strains. This study reveals that the strain WRN014 and other Bacillus velezensis strains have potential to be used as PGPR and biopesticide.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.481-487
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• 2021

The purpose of this study was to provide safety management information by analyzing the survival and growth-related properties of foodborne pathogens from Romaine lettuce. After cultivating E. coli O157:H7 for 72 h on Romain lettuce via spray inoculation, the bacteria population increased by 2.0 log CFU/g from the initial population, confirming the possibility of survival and multiplication of the pathogen thereon. The study also revealed that there is no significant difference in the cultivation of E.coli O157:H7 after 72 h from inoculation on damaged and undamaged lettuce leaves. As a result of investigating distribution of E.coli O157:H7 on damaged lettuce leaves, it was found that the bacteria is unlikely to adhere on the smooth surface of undamaged leaves and, thus, results in a low population density, whereas the bacteria cluster on the rough surface of damaged leaves and easily enter through the damaged tissues. Furthermore, after 24 h of cultivation of the pathogenic microbe in the extract with concentrations of 10-100%, utilization of the lettuce extract by the pathogen was found to be 8.9 log CFU/mL E. coli O157:H7, 8.6 log CFU/mL L. monocytogenes, and 8.8 log CFU/mL P. carotovorum. The increase in the population of both the pathogenic microbe and foodborne pathogen reached over 4 log CFU/mL, implying the microbe can utilize the lettuce extract as a source of nutrition. Compared to the initial inoculation concentration in 0.1% lettuce extract, the final concentration has increased up to 2.7 log CFU/mL E. coli O157:H7, 1.3 log CFU/mL L. monocytogenes, and 2.9 log CFU/mL P. carotovorum. Accordingly, the study confirms that the minimal growth concentration of the pathogenic microbe is lower than 0.1% and that the pathogen possibly survive and multiply inside the lettuce leaves given the lettuce extract with concentration of 0.1% is consistently supplied through the damaged tissues.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.887-892
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• 2011

This study was to find out influence of heavy metal concentration in plant on microbial activities during decomposition of Artenmisia princeps var. orientalis and Equisetum arvense collected from an abandoned mine and control site in Cheongyang-gun Chungcheongnam-do. Microbial respiration rate showed the highest value at the time of the first collection, and then tended to decline over time. The highest microbial respiration rate appeared in leaf litters with low heavy metal contents, and A. princeps var. orientalis and E. arvense collected and decomposed at the control site showed the fastest decomposition rate. For both A. princeps var. orientalis and E. arvense, litters with low heavy metal content appeared to have higher microbial biomass. There was apparent quantitative correlation between decomposition rate and cumulative respiration rate of leaf litters, and between decomposition rate and microbial biomass of leaf litters. Thus, the study result showed that leaf litter with higher heavy metal content had a negative impacts on the growth and activity of microbial decomposer during decomposition processes.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.25 no.12
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• pp.1742-1747
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• 2012

A total of 96 growing pigs ((Landrace${\times}$Yorkshire)${\times}$Duroc; BW = $26.58{\pm}1.41$ kg) were used in a 6-wk feeding trail to evaluate the effects of fermented chlorella (FC) supplementation on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, blood characteristics, fecal microbial and fecal noxious gas content in growing pigs. Pigs were randomly allotted into 1 of 4 dietary treatments with 6 replicate pens (2 barrows and 2 gilts) per treatment. Dietary treatments were: i) negative control (NC), basal diet (without antibiotics); ii) positive control (PC), NC+0.05% tylosin; iii) (fermented chlorella 01) FC01, NC+0.1% FC, and iv) fermented chlorella 02 (FC02), NC+0.2% FC. In this study, feeding pigs PC or FC01 diets led to a higher average daily gain (ADG) and dry matter (DM) digestibility than those fed NC diet (p<0.05), whereas the inclusion of FC02 diet did not affect the ADG and DM compared with the NC group. No difference (p>0.05) was observed on the body weight, average daily feed intake (ADFI), gain:feed (G:F) ratio, the apparent total tract digestibility of N and energy throughout the experiment. The inclusion of PC or FC did not affect the blood characteristics (p>0.05). Moreover, dietary FC treatment led to a higher (p<0.05) lactobacillus concentration and lower E. coli concentration than the NC treatment, whereas the antibiotic supplementation only decreased the E. coli concentration. Pigs fed FC or PC diet had reduced (p<0.05) fecal $NH_3$ and $H_2S$ content compared with those fed NC diet. In conclusion, our results indicated that the inclusion of FC01 treatment could improve the growth performance, nutrient digestibility, fecal microbial shedding (lower E. coli and higher lactobacillus), and decrease the fecal noxious gas emission in growing pigs when compared with the group fed the basal diet. In conclusion, dietary FC could be considered as a good source of supplementation in growing pigs because of its growth promoting effect.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.73-81
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• 2013

Various remediation methods have been applied to clean soils contaminated with pollutants. They remove contaminants from the soils by utilizing physicochemical, biological, and thermal processes and can satisfy soil remediation standards within a limited time; however, they also have an effect on the biological functions of soils by changing soil properties. In this study, changes of the biological properties of soils before and after treatment with three frequently used remediation methods-soil washing, land farming, and thermal desorption-were monitored to investigate the effects of remediation methods on soil biological functions. Total microbial number and soil enzyme activities, germination rate and growth of Brassica juncea, biomass change of Eisenia andrei were examined the effects on soil microorganisms, plant, and soil organisms, respectively. After soil washing, the germination rate of Brassica juncea increased but the above-ground growth and total microbial number decreased. Dehydrogenase activity, germination rate and above-ground growth increased in both land farming and thermal desorption treated soil. Although the growth of Eisenia andrei in thermal desorption treated soil was higher than any other treatment, it was still lower than that in non-contaminated soil. These results show that the remediation processes used to clean contaminated soil also affect soil biological functions. To utilize the cleaned soil for healthy and more value-added purposes, soil improvement and process development are needed.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.21 no.8
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• pp.777-790
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• 2011

To elucidate the biodiversity of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) in Korea, 7,638 bacteria isolated from the rhizosphere of plant species growing in many different regions were screened. A large number of PGPR were identified by testing the ability of each isolate to promote the growth of cucumber seedlings. After redundant rhizobacteria were removed via amplified rDNA restriction analysis, 90 strains were finally selected as PGPR. On the basis of 16S ribosomal RNA sequences, 68 Gram-positive (76%) and 22 Gram-negative (24%) isolates were assigned to 21 genera and 47 species. Of these genera, Bacillus (32 species) made up the largest complement, followed by Paenibacillus (19) and Pseudomonas (11). Phylogenetic analysis showed that most of the Grampositive PGPR fell into two categories: low- and high- G+C (Actinobacteria) strains. The Gram-negative PGPR were distributed in three categories: ${\alpha}$-proteobacteria, ${\beta}$- proteobacteria, and ${\gamma}$-proteobacteria. To our knowledge, this is the largest screening study designed to isolate diverse PGPR. The enlarged understanding of PGPR genetic diversity provided herein will expand the knowledge base regarding beneficial plant-microbe interactions. The outcome of this research may have a practical effect on crop production methodologies.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.683-690
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• 2013

A study was conducted to evaluate the effects of resveratrol and essential oils from medicinal plants on the growth performance, immunity, digestibility, and fecal microbial shedding of weaned piglets. A total of 48 weaned piglets (8 kg initial weight, 28-d-old) were randomly allotted to four dietary treatments with 3 replications of 4 piglets each. The dietary treatments were NC (negative control; basal diet), PC (positive control; basal diet+0.002% apramycin), T1 (basal diet+0.2% resveratrol), and T2 (basal diet+0.0125% essential oil blend). All piglets were orally challenged with 5 ml culture fluid containing $2.3{\times}10^8$ cfu/ml of Escherichia coli KCTC 2571 and $5.9{\times}10^8$ cfu/ml Salmonella enterica serover Typhimurium. The PC group (p<0.05) showed the highest average daily gain (ADG) and average daily feed intake (ADFI) throughout the experimental period, although feed conversion ratio (FCR) was improved in the T1 group (p>0.05). Serum IgG level was increased in the T1 group, whereas TNF-${\alpha}$ levels was reduced in the supplemented groups compared to control (p<0.05). The PC diet improved the dry matter (DM) digestibility, whereas PC and T2 diets improved nitrogen (N) digestibility compared to NC and T1 diets (p<0.05). Fecal Salmonella and E. coli counts were reduced in all treatment groups compared to control (p<0.05). Fecal Lactobacillus spp. count was increased in the T2 group compared to others (p<0.05). Dietary treatments had no significant effect on fecal Bacillus spp. count throughout the entire experimental period. Based on these results, resveratrol showed strong potential as antibiotic alternatives for reversing the adverse effects of weaning stress on growth performance, immunity and microbial environment in E. coli and Salmonella-challenged piglets.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.24-28
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• 1977

For the production of microbial cells from cellulosie materials by cellulore-assimilating bacteria, Cellulomonas flavigena GFB 24-1, isolated by authors, utilization of this organism on some microbiological properties was investigated. The results of these studies were summarized at follows; 1. When the organism was incubated in the growth medium at pH 7.0 for 50 hours, its growth was the most effective and the level of excreted total protein in the menstruum increased continuously during the stationary phase of cell growth. 2. The optimal enzyme activity was observed in the pH region of 5 to 7 and culture period of 40 to 50 hours. 3. The microbial degestibility of cellulosic wastes such as sawdust, rice hull, rice straw, peanut hull and used newspaper was less than 30％, whereas that of cellulose powder was 47.1％ and rice straw was digested 77％ by NaOH treatment. 4. Bacterial cells incubated in the growth medium were increased up to 8％ of sustrate concentration and showed a decrease on further concentration. 5. The production of microbial cells from NaOH treated rice straw was obtained 10.6mg/ml of culture medium.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.3_spc
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• pp.427-433
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• 2021

Objective: An experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of Achyranthes japonica extracts (AJE) on the growth performance, nutrient digestibility, fecal microbial shedding, and fecal gas emission of growing pigs. Methods: A total of 180 ([Landrace×Yorkshire]×Duroc) growing pigs with initial body weight (BW) of 23.94±1.54 kg were used in this study to investigate the effects of AJE as a feed additive. Dietary treatments included: i) CON (basal diet), ii) TRT1 (basal diet+0.05% AJE), and iii) TRT2 (basal diet+0.10% AJE). Results: As a result of the dietary supplementation of 0% to 0.10% AJE, a linear increase of BW (p<0.05) on d 21 and 42, a linear increase of average daily gain (ADG) (p<0.05) during d 21 to 42, a trend in linear increase of ADG (p<0.10) during d 0 to 21 and d 0 to 42, a linear increase of gain to feed ratio (G:F) (p<0.05) during d 0 to 42, and a tendency in the linear increase of G:F during d 21 to 42 were observed in this study. Additionally, dietary supplementation of 0% to 0.10% AJE had a linear increase (p<0.05) on the apparent total tract digestibility of dry matter (DM) and energy, a linear increase (p<0.05) on lactic acid bacteria counts, a tendency in reducing (linear effect, p<0.10) coliform bacteria counts, and a linear decrease (p<0.05) in excreta H2S emission content in growing pigs. Conclusion: In conclusion, the results suggested that AJE had the potential to enhance growth performance, DM and energy digestibility, and fecal lactic acid bacteria counts, and decrease the fecal coliform bacteria counts and excreta H2S emission in growing pigs.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.286-296
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• 2023

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of soil microbial fertilizer (SMF) containing Saccharomyces cerevisiae HS-1 and Streptococcus thermophiles HS-2 on the growth of creeping bentgrass. For the pot experiment, the treatments were as follows: no fertilizer (NF), control (3 N g/m²/month), SMF-1 (control+SMF 2 mL/m²/time), and SMF-2 (control+SMF 4 mL/m²/time). For the plot experiment, the treatments were as follows: NF, control, SMFp-1 (control+SMF 1 mL/m²/time), SMFp-2 (control+SMF 2 mL/m²/time), and SMFp-3 (control+SMF 4 mL/m²/time). In the pot experiment, visual turfgrass quality and the uptake amount of nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) were increased under the SMF treatments, whereas the content of chlorophyll (a, b, and a+b) and clipping yield were not considerably different compared with the control. In the pot experiment, the amount of SMF positively correlated with visual turfgrass quality and uptake amount of N and K. In the plot experiment, turfgrass density was increased by 12.9-19.2% under SMFp treatments compared with the control. These results indicated that the application of SMF containing Sa. cerevisiae HS-1 and St. thermophiles HS-2 improved the quality, density, and growth of creeping bentgrass via prompting the uptake of N and K.