• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.11-15
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• 2011

To provide basic information for Verticillium spp., molecular methods were applied to analyze genetic characteristics within Verticillium spp. including Verticillium dahliae, isolated from diseased plants in two regions of Korea. Five Korean isolates of V. dahliae causing Verticillium wilt on chrysanthemum were analyzed, together with six other Verticillium spp., using mitochondrial small subunit rRNA gene (rns) sequence and random-amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD). In a phylogenetic tree based on rns region sequences, Korean V. dahliae isolates formed a single clade with foreign isolates, whereas the other Verticillium spp. formed separate groups. In addition to rns sequence analysis, a dendrogram based on RAPD fragment patterns also showed clustering of all V. dahliae isolates into one group, separate from the six different Verticillium spp., and the V. dahliae isolates formed three subgroups which corresponded to the regions of origin, Kumi, Busan city and Canada. This indicates that high genetic variation exists between regions, although the fungus was isolated from the same host plant, chrysanthemum. These results provide the foundation for the study of genetic diversity and relationships among V. dahliae isolates in Korea.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.122-126
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• 2005

The effect of Al-MCM-41 preparation methods on the catalytic degradation of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) was investigated. Al-MCM-41 catalysts were synthesized by direct method (Al-MCM-41-D) and post treatment method (Al-MCM-41-P) and their characteristics were elucidated by XRD, BET, $NH_3\;TPD,\;^{27}Al$ MAS NMR. TGA kinetic analysis showed that the catalytic activation energies of Al-MCM-41-D and Al-MCM-41-P were 191.54 and 114.26 kJ/mol, respectively. The higher catalytic activity of Al-MCM-41-P would be attributed to its smaller pore size as well as higher number of acid sites that are accessible.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.55-63
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• 2004

Bovine leukemia virus (BLV) is a causative agent for lymphoma disease in cattle including cows worldwide. BLV shares similar virion structure and characteristics with other retroviruses. The pol gene of the BLV genome produced reverse transcriptase (RT) and integrase (IN) for important roles for BLV genome integration into host cell chromosomes that is known to be coded in the 3' side of the BLV pol gene (one third portion). In this study, we have sequenced 978 bp in the 3' side of the BLV pol gene from BLV 10C3 in order to determine the BLV IN region of it. And we compared it to the nucleotide sequences of an Australian BLV isolate. As a result, nucleotide sequences of the IN region of the Korean-type BLV pol gene were mutated at a rate of 3.7%. We can confirm that the typical mutations are such as Arg (AGG) $\rightarrow$ Lys (AAG), Thr (ACG) $\rightarrow$ Met (ATG), Ile (ATT) $\rightarrow$ Val (GTT), Asn (ACC) $\rightarrow$ His (CAC), Phe (TTT) $\rightarrow$ Leu (TTG) and Asn (ACC) $\rightarrow$ Asp (GAC). From the analysis of the sequencing data, we were able to determine the zinc-finger-like "HHCC" motif in the amino terminus of BLV IN, that was H-$X_3$-H-$X_{25}-C-X_2$-C. It was also found the DD35E motif in the IN catalytic domain as D-$X_{56}$-D-$X_{35}$-E. It fits very well to the consensus sequences of retroviral IN as well as HHCC motif.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Combustion
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.36-44
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• 2002

Carbon molecules with closed-cage structures are called fullerenes $(C_{60},\;C_{70})$, whose applications include super-conductors, sensors, catalysts, optical and electronic device, polymer composites, and biological and medical materials. The synthesis of fullerenes has been recently studied with low-pressure benzene/argon/oxygen flames. The formation of fullerene is known as molecular weight growth processes of PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon). This study presents results of PAHs and fullerene measurements performed in a low-pressure benzene/argon/oxygen normal co-flow laminar diffusion flame. Through the central tube of the burner, benzene vapors carried by argon are injected. The benzene vapors are made in a temperature-controlled bubbler. The burner is located in a chamber, equipped with a sampling system for direct collection of condensable species from the flame, and exhausted to a vacuum pump. Samples of the condensable are analyzed by HPLC (High Performance Liquid Chromatography) to determine the yields of PAHs and fullerene. Also, we computed mole fraction of fullerene and PAHs in a nearly sooting low pressure premixed, one-dimensional benzene/argon/oxygen flame (equivalence ratio ${\Phi}=2.4$, pressure=5.33kPa). The object of computation was to investigate the formation mechanism of fullerenes and PAHs. The computations were performed with CHEMKIN/PREMIX. As a result of this study, fullerenes were synthesized in a low pressure (20torr) $C_6H_6/Ar/O_2$ flames and the highest concentration of fullerene was detected just above the visible surface of a flame.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.132-138
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• 2010

A gene encoding a putative alanine racemase in B. pseudomycoides was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) using a pET-21 vector harbouring 6xHistidine tag. Affinity purification of the recombinant alanine racemase with a nickel resin resulted in one band by SDS-PAGE analysis. The purified enzyme showed a molecular weight of 46 kDa. The enzyme was the most active toward L-alanine and secondly D-alanine, implying that the enzyme is an alanine racemase. D-cysteine significantly inhibited the enzyme activity and also L-cysteine to a lesser extent. The enzyme was considerably activated by addition of pyridoxal-5'-phosphate (PLP), showing that 73% increase in activity was observed at 0.3 mM, compared to control. The enzyme was the most active at pH 9.0 and more stable at alkaline pHs than acidic pHs.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.205-212
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• 2001

One of the important characteristics of biological systems os their ability to change im-portant properties in response to small environmental signals. The molecular mechanisms that biological molecules utilize to sense and respond provide interesting models for the development of "smart" polymeric biomaterials with biomimetic properties. An important example of this is the protein coat of viruses, which contains peptide units that facilitate the trafficking of the virus into the cell via endocytosis, then out of the endosome into the cytoplasm, and from there into the nucleus, We have designed a family of synthetic polymers whose compositions have been de-signed to mimic specific peptides on viral coats that facilitate endosomal escape. Our biomimetic polymers are responsive to the lowered pH whinin endosomes, leading to distruption of the en-dosomal membrane and release of important biomolecular druges such as DNA, RNA, peptides and proteins to the cytoplasm before they are trafficked to lysosomes and degraded by lysosomal en-zymes. In this article, we review our work on the design, synthesis and action of such smart, pH-sensitive polymers.

• The Korean Journal of Zoology
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.239-247
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• 1996

An embryonic stem (ES) cell-based in vitro model system was examined to determine whether a simple differentiation of embryoid bodies (EB) in the suspension medium is useful to dissect early erythropoiesis. Characteristics of the differentiating EBs were monitored for their differentiation potential to generate hematopoietic cell types by general morphology, benzidine staining and two-step colony assays, and expressivity of several erythroid marker genes by the RT-PCR analysis for total cellular RNA prepared from the differentiating EBs. Every ematopoietic lineage cells were generated from the differentiating EBs with reproducible frequencies, similar to the other sophisticated differentiation protocols. Furthermore, the globin gene switching in differentiating ES cells paralleled the sequence of events found in the mouse embryo, and such that their expression was activated by at least 12 hrs later than those of erythroid-specific transcription factors, GATA-1 and Tal-1 The erythropoietic differentiation program initiated reproducibly and efficiently in this simple differentiation system in a suspension culture, such that this system may be useful for dissection of the molecular events of early erythropoiesis.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.352-358
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• 2011

The presence of ISKNV-like viruses in various freshwater ornamental fish species imported from Asia was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction(PCR) amplification of the ATPase(adenosine triphosphatase) gene. Interestingly, molecular analyses of the Open Reading Frame 25(ORF25) region of these isolates based on the ISKNV(Infectious spleen and kidney necrosis virus) genome revealed the presence of various repetitive sequences. ORF25 repeat sequence length had no effect on cumulative mortality of rock bream Oplegnathus fasciatus challenged with tissue homogenates of infected pearl gourami, Trichogaster leeri; silver gourami, Trichogaster microlepis; blue gourami, or Trichogaster trichopterus. All isolates induce cumulative mortalities after 12 days of infection, confirming that ORF25 polymorphism did not affect the pathogenicity of ornamental fish megalocytiviruses that cross infect rock bream, a seawater fish. Also, no statistically significant differences in spleen index or viral copy number in infected tissues was detected between isolates with varying ORF25 repeat sequence lengths. However, further studies are necessary to fully characterize the functional characteristics of these polymorphisms in megalocytivirus disease in ornamental fishes.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.828-834
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• 2010

An ethanol-producing yeast strain, CHFY0201, was isolated from soil in South Korea using an enrichment technique in a yeast peptone dextrose medium supplemented with 5% (w/v) ethanol at $30^{\circ}C$. The phenotypic and physiological characteristics, as well as molecular phylogenetic analysis based on the D1/D2 domains of the large subunit (26S) rDNA gene and the internally transcribed spacer (ITS) 1+2 regions, suggested that the CHFY0201 was a novel strain of Schizosaccharomyces pombe. During shaking flask cultivation, the highest ethanol productivity and theoretical yield of S. pombe CHFY0201 in YPD media containing 9.5% total sugars were $0.59{\pm}0.01$ g/l/h and $88.4{\pm}0.91%$, respectively. Simultaneous saccharification and fermentation for ethanol production was carried out using liquefied cassava (Manihot esculenta) powder in a 5-l lab-scale jar fermenter at $32^{\circ}C$ for 66 h with an agitation speed of 120 rpm. Under these conditions, S. pombe CHFY0201 yielded a final ethanol concentration of $72.1{\pm}0.27$ g/l and a theoretical yield of $82.7{\pm}1.52%$ at a maximum ethanol productivity of $1.16{\pm}0.07$ g/l/h. These results suggest that S. pombe CHFY0201 is a potential producer for industrial bioethanol production.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.65-73
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• 1978

Naringinase extracted from the culture media of Aspergillus nidulans was purified, and the activity was proved to be stronger by 781 fold in the part of precipitation with ammonium sulfate, and column chromatography using DEAE-Sephadex A-25 and Sephadex G-100. Two fractions which had the same enzyme activity were isolated by the purification. Both fractions showed the highest enzymes activity under the reaction conditions of pH 5.0 and 40$^{\circ}C$. Molecular weight of fraction I and fraction II were estimated as 78,000 and 26,000 respectively. This indicated that fraction I would be trimer of fraction II. The enzyme was inhibited by glucose and rhammose, and the Km value was calculated to be 2.3${\times}$ 10$\^$-6/ g/ml.