• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.1073-1079
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• 2005

To investigate plant protection, pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins and plant defense enzymes related to cell wall lignification were studied in pepper plants inoculated with antagonistic Bacillus subtilis HJ927 and pathogenic strain Phytophthora capsici. Phytophthora blight disease was reduced by $53\%$ in pepper roots when preinoculated with B. subtilis HJ927 against P. capsici. The activities of PR proteins (chitinase and ${\beta}$-1,3,-glucanase) and defense-related enzymes (peroxidase, polyphenoloxidase, and phenylalanine ammonia lyase) decreased in roots of B. subtilis+P capsid-treated plants, but increased in leaves with time. The decrease and increase were much greater in P. capsici-treated plants than in B. subtilis HJ927+P capsici-treated plants, although P. capsici-treated plants had more severe damage. Therefore, changes of enzyme activities do not seem to be directly related to plant protection. We suggest that the change of these enzymes in pathogen-treated plants may be related to plant response rather than to resistance against pathogen attacks.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.39 no.5
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• pp.430-448
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• 2023

Recently, strategies for controlling Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici (Fol), the causal agent of Fusarium wilt of tomato, focus on using effective biocontrol agents. In this study, an analysis of the biocontrol and plant growth promoting (PGP) attributes of 11 isolates of loamy soil Bacillus spp. has been conducted. Among them, the isolates B.PNR1 and B.PNR2 inhibited the mycelial growth of Fol by inducing abnormal fungal cell wall structures and cell wall collapse. Moreover, broad-spectrum activity against four other plant pathogenic fungi, F. oxysporum f. sp. cubense race 1 (Foc), Sclerotium rolfsii, Colletotrichum musae, and C. gloeosporioides were noted for these isolates. These two Bacillus isolates produced indole acetic acid, phosphate solubilization enzymes, and amylolytic and cellulolytic enzymes. In the pot experiment, the culture filtrate from B.PNR1 showed greater inhibition of the fungal pathogens and significantly promoted the growth of tomato plants more than those of the other treatments. Isolate B.PNR1, the best biocontrol and PGP, was identified as Bacillus stercoris by its 16S rRNA gene sequence and whole genome sequencing analysis (WGS). The WGS, through genome mining, confirmed that the B.PNR1 genome contained genes/gene cluster of a nonribosomal peptide synthetase/polyketide synthase, such as fengycin, surfactin, bacillaene, subtilosin A, bacilysin, and bacillibactin, which are involved in antagonistic and PGP activities. Therefore, our finding demonstrates the effectiveness of B. stercoris strain B.PNR1 as an antagonist and for plant growth promotion, highlighting the use of this microorganism as a biocontrol agent against the Fusarium wilt pathogen and PGP abilities in tomatoes.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.114-149
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• 2017

World-wide crop loss caused by insect pest and nematode reaches critical level. In Korea, similar crop loss has been gradually augmented in the field and greenhouse due to continuous crop rotation. The current methods on controlling herbivorous insects and plant parasitic nematodes are mostly depended on agro-chemicals that have resulted additional side-effect including occurrence of resistant insects and nematodes, environmental contamination, and accumulation in human body. To overcome the pitfalls, microbe-based control method have been introduced and applied for several decades. Here, we revised biological control using by the bacteria, fungi, and virus in order to kill insect and nematode and to attenuate its virulence mechanism. The introduced microbes mainly secreted out the hydrolysing enzymes and toxic compounds to target host membrane or cell wall directly. Indirectly, the microbe-triggered plant innate immunity against insects and nematodes was also reported. In conclusion, we provide a new frontier of microbe-based environmentally friendly procedure and effective methods to manage insects and nematodes.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Plant Pathology Conference
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• 2003.10a
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• pp.120.2-120
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• 2003

Agrobacterium vitis is a causal agent of crown-gall disease on grapevine. In Korea, grapevine variety (GeoBong) have severely been infected by the bacteria since stems of the variety were buried in soil for overwintering. Infection ratio over 70-80％ was observed on 7 years old GeoBong grapevine in Ansung and Cheonan. PCR specific primers for A. vitis strains were designed using nucleotide sequences of vir A gene in Ti-Plasmid, pheA gene in chromosomal DNA and a URP-PCR polymorphic band. Three hundred bacterial strains were isolated from the different 80 galls formed on GeoBong grapevine in Cheonan and Ansung of Korea and were screened to identify A. vitis using the three specific PCR primers for Agrobacterium vitis. Twenty-four bacterial strains that are detected by the primers were further confirmed by pathogenicity and biochemical methods. To investigate the genomic diversity of the bacterial strains, twenty primers of 20 mer referred to universal rice primers (URP) were applied for PCR fingerprinting, Of them, URP2R and URP2F primers could effectively be used to detect polymorphism within the bacterial strains.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.651-658
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• 2010

Garcinia is commonly found in Malaysia, but limited information is available regarding endophytic fungi associated with this plant. In this study, 24 endophytic fungi were successfully recovered from different parts of two Garcinia species. Characterization of endophytic fungi was performed based on the conserved internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region sequence analysis and the antimicrobial properties. Results revealed that fruits of the plant appeared to be the highest inhabitation site (38%) as compared with others. Glomerella sp., Guignardia sp., and Phomopsis sp. appeared to be the predominant endophytic fungi group in Garcinia mangostana and Garcinia parvifolia. Phylogenetic relationships of the isolated endophytic fungi were estimated from the sequences of the ITS region. On the other hand, antibacterial screening showed 11 of the isolates possessed positive response towards pathogenic and nonpathogenic bacteria. However, there was no direct association between certain antibacterial properties with the specific genus observed.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.202-205
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• 2006

Ginseng is major medicinal plant in Korea. Because of its long cultivation period the yield losses of 5 years of ginseng is 50% due to various diseases. The objective of this study is to select potential biocontrol agents. As the result of research so far achieved to contribute to rational prevention of ginseag plant disease for the stable cultivation of ginseng, three bacterial strains, Streptomyces lauretii strain B8180, Bacillus subtilis strain 8856, and Burkholderia cepacia strain 7944 were isolated from oak leaf compost. The strains showed antagonistic activities against five ginseng pathogenic fungi (Cylindrocarpon destructans, Rhizoctonia solani, Phytophthora cactorum, Botrytis cinerea, Fusarium solani f. sp. panacis) and control effects on Phytophthora blight.

• Plant Disease and Agriculture
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.69-76
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• 1999

Acidovorax avenae subsp. avenae is the causal pathogen of several hosts including oats corn foxtail millet wheatgrass sugarcane and rice. The pathogen is a seedborne pathogen of rice and known to occur widely in rice growing countries. The pathogen cause inhibition of germination brown stripe on the leaf curling of the leaf sheath and abnormal elongation of the mesocotyl of irce. Bacterial colonies grow slowly and are convex circular and creamy with tan to brown center. The causal baterium is Gram-negative and rod shape with a single polar flagellum Nonfluorescence poly-$\beta$-hydroxybutyrate accumulation and precipitate formation around the colony on the medium are useful in the differentiation of this bacterium from other subspecies of A. avenae as well as nonfluorescent bacteria pathogenic to rice. This bacterium has belonged to the genus of Psdeudomonas but recently was transferred to the new genus Acidovorax on the basis of bacteriological and molecular biological data. However the difference of biochemical characteristics protein profile of the cell and host range among strains should be more clarified. To develop an effective control strategy for this disease understanding of detailed life cycle of the disease ritical environmental factors affecting disease development on each host and relationship to grain discoloration of rice are prerequisite. Although the affected area has been world-widely reported there is on recent progress on the understanding of the bacteriological and ecological characteristics of the causal bacterium and control means of the disease.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.280-283
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• 2003

A soybean-sprout rot epidemic occurred in a mass production soybean sprout factory in 2000 and 2001 in Korea, which caused up to 20% production loss. Among the causal pathogenic bacteria and fungi, Pythium deliense was found to be the dominant pathogen of severe root and hypocotyls rot, particularly in recirculating water system. An average of 90% of the isolated fungi from the rotted sprout on potato dextrose agar were Pythium sp. The fungal density of Pythium in the sampled water was monitored in the recycled water system for 1 year using a selective medium (com meal agar with Pimaricin, 10 mg； Rifampicin, 10 mg； and Ampicillin, 100 mg per 1 liter). The drained water from the soybean-sprout cultivation always had a certain amount of fungus in it. The removal of Pythium from the recycling water system must be thorough, safe, and environment friendly. However, the pathogen in the water was easily found even after ozone and chlorine treatments, which were devised on the recycling system for the removal of microorganisms. 5-$\mu\textrm{m}$ pore size filter was applied and was able to successfully control the disease. As the sprout industry increasingly shifts into mass production, the demand for water will increase continuously. Recycling water for sprout production is eco-friendly. However, a process must be devised to be able to first decompose organic matters before Pythium zoospores are filtered.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.355-365
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• 2022

Erwinia amylovora and E. pyrifoliae are the causative agents of destructive diseases in both apple and pear trees viz. fire blight and black shoot blight, respectively. Since the introduction of fire blight in Korea in 2015, the occurrence of both pathogens has been independently reported. The co-incidence of these diseases is highly probable given the co-existence of their pathogenic bacteria in the same trees or orchards in a city/district. Hence, this study evaluated whether both diseases occurred in neighboring orchards and whether they occurred together in a single orchard. The competition and virulence of the two pathogens was compared using growth rates in vitro and in planta. Importantly, E amylovora showed significantly higher colony numbers than E. pyrifoliae when they were co-cultured in liquid media and co-inoculated into immature apple fruits and seedlings. In a comparison of the usage of major carbon sources, which are abundant in immature apple fruits and seedlings, E. amylovora also showed better growth rates than E. pyrifoliae. In virulence assays, including motility and a hypersensitive response (HR), E. amylovora demonstrated a larger diameter of travel from the inoculation site than E. pyrifoliae in both swarming and swimming motilities. E. amylovora elicited a HR in tobacco leaves when diluted from 1:1 to 1:16 but E. pyrifoliae does not elicit a HR when diluted at 1:16. Therefore, E. amylovora was concluded to have a greater competitive fitness than E. pyrifoliae.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.308-312
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• 2011

Plant lactic acid bacteria were isolated from plant-associated fermentative foods and crops, and their probiotic properties were investigated. Isolates K27 and O2 were isolated from Kimchi and onion, and identified as Lactobacillus plantarum on the basis of 16S rRNA gene analysis. The two strains were highly resistant to acid (an MRS broth at pH 2.5), where the survival rates of L. plantarum K27 and L. plantarum O2 were 90.2% and 97.3%, respectively. L. plantarum K27 and L. plantarum O2 also showed high bile resistance to 0.5% oxgall, with a more than 70% survival rate. They showed an inhibitory effect against pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli KCCM 40880 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 10145. The antibacterial effect of the two strains was probably due to the presence of lactic acid. ACE inhibitory activities of the two strains ranged from 72.8% to 80.6% in MRS broth. Notably, the two strains showed high ACE inhibitory activity (89.2~98.2%) in MRS broth containing 10% skim milk. Antioxidant activity was tested by DPPH radical scavenging activity, with antioxidant activities of the strains being in the range of 56.8~61.5%. The results obtained in this study suggest that L. plantarum K27 and L. plantarum O2 may be potential probiotic starter cultures with applications with fermentative products.