• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.1008-1018
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• 2018

Although bacteriocins with anti-listerial activity have been isolated from a wide variety of lactic acid bacteria, little is known about those from Leuconostoc lactis, a heterofermentative bacterium that produces diacetyl and exopolysaccharides in dairy foods. In this study, an anti-listerial bacteriocin was isolated from Leuc. lactis SD501 and characterized. It was particularly potent against Listeria monocytogenes and also inhibited Enterococcus faecalis. Anti-listerial activity reached a maximum during the early stationary phase and then decreased gradually. The anti-listerial substance was sensitive to proteinase K and ${\alpha}$-chymotrypsin, confirming its proteinaceous nature. Its activity remained stable at pH values ranging from 1 to 10. In addition, it was strongly resistant to high temperatures, retaining its activity even after incubation for 15 min at $121^{\circ}C$. The apparent molecular mass of the partially purified anti-listerial bacteriocin was approximately 7 kDa. The characteristics of the SD501 bacteriocin, including its small molecular size (<10 kDa), strong anti-listerial activity, wide pH stability and good thermostability, indicate its classification as a Class IIa bacteriocin.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.195-200
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• 2000

Bacillus cereus BS229 was identified as a bacteriocin producer with a bactericidal activity against Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. Thomsoni BR-40. Bacillus cereus BS229 and cerein BS229, named tentatively as the bacteriocin produced by Bacillus cereus BS229, showed a narrow spectrum of actibity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, along with yeast and molds. Production of cerein BS229 in a 5-1 fermenter followed typical kinetics of primary metabolite synthesis. The antibacterial activity of cerein BS229 on sensitive indicator cells disappeared completely by ${\alpha}-chmotrypsin$ or proteinase K, which indicates its proteinaceous nature. Cerein BS229 seemed to be very stable throughout the pH range of 2.0 of 9.0 and it was relatively heat labile, despite the fact that bacteriocin activity was still detected after being boied for 30min. Cerein BS229 actibity has been changed with some of the organic solvents such as toluene, ethanol, and chloroform. Direct detection of cerein BS229 actibity on SDS-PAGE suggested that it had an apparent molecular mass of about 8.2 kDa.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.7
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• pp.1059-1070
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• 2007

Prion diseases, often called transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), are infectious diseases that accompany neurological dysfunctions in many mammalian hosts. Prion diseases include Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in humans, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, "mad cow disease") in cattle, scrapie in sheep, and chronic wasting disease (CWD) in deer and elks. The cause of these fatal diseases is a proteinaceous pathogen termed prion that lacks functional nucleic acids. As demonstrated in the BSE outbreak and its transmission to humans, the onset of disease is not limited to a certain species but can be transmissible from one host species to another. Such a striking nature of prions has generated huge concerns in public health and attracted serious attention in the scientific communities. To date, the potential transmission of prions to humans via foodborne infection and iatrogenic routes has not been alleviated. Rather, the possible transmission of human to human or cervids to human aggravates the terrifying situation across the globe. In this review, basic features about prion diseases including clinical and pathological characteristics, etiology, and transmission of diseases are described. Based on recently accumulated evidences, the molecular and biochemical aspects of prions, with an emphasis on the molecular interactions involved in prion conversion that is critical during prion replication and pathogenesis, are also addressed.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.481-485
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• 2010

Lactobacillus plantarum strain KK3 with tannase activity was isolated from Gochunipkimchi (red pepper leaf kimchi) and showed a high antagonistic activity against five kinds of food pathogens. Strain KK3 secreted antibacterial compound into culture medium and 24-h culture in MRS broth at $30^{\circ}C$ was enough for the antibacterial compound production. The crude antibacterial compound prepared from culture supernatant inhibited the growth of some Gram-negative bacteria and Bacillus cereus but not Listeria monocytogenes. The antibacterial activity was sensitive to proteinase K treatment, confirming its proteinaceous nature (bacteriocin). The crude bacteriocin was active in the pH range 3.5-8.5 and extremely stable after 15 min of heat treatment at $121^{\circ}C$. The strain KK3 produced equally active bacteriocin in Chinese cabbage juice as it produced in MRS broth.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.614-621
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• 2012

Silver nanoparticles production by the green chemistry approach was investigated using an isolated marine actinomycetes strain. The isolated strain was identified as Streptomyces albidoflavus based on chemotaxonomic and ribotyping properties. The strain revealed production of silver nanoparticles both extracellular and intracellularly. Surface Plasmon Resonance analysis with the function of time revealed that particle synthesis by this strain is reaction time dependent. The produced particles were spherical shaped and monodispersive in nature and showed a single surface plasmon resonance peak at 410 nm. Size distribution histograms indicated production of 10-40-nm-size nanoparticles with a mean size of 14.5 nm. FT-IR spectra of nanopartilces showed N-H, C-H, and C-N stretching vibrations, denoting the presence of amino acid/peptide compounds on the surface of silver nanoparticles produced by S. albidoflavus. Synthesized nanoparticles revealed a mean negative zeta potential and electrophoretic mobility of -8.5 mV and -0.000066 $cm^2/Vs$, respectively. The nanoparticles produced were proteinaceous compounds as capping agents with -8.5 mV zeta potential and revealed antimicrobial activity against both Gram-negative and -positive bacterial strains. Owing to their small size, these particles have greater impact on industrial application spectra.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.7
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• pp.1033-1042
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• 2019

Bacillus velezensis BS2 was isolated from meongge (common sea squirt) jeotgal, a Korean fermented seafood, and produces a bacteriocin, BacBS2, which strongly inhibits Listeria monocytogenes and Bacillus cereus. BacBS2 was partially purified by Q-Sepharose column chromatography after ammonium sulfate precipitation of the culture supernatant, then further purified by Sephadex G-50 column chromatography. Partially purified BacBS2 was estimated to be 6.5 kDa in size by Tricine-SDS PAGE and activity detection by gel-overlay. Enzyme treatment and FT-IR spectrum of partially purified BacBS2 confirmed its proteinaceous nature. BacBS2 was fully stable at pH 4-9, and half of activity was retained at pH 1-3. Full activity was retained after exposure to $80^{\circ}C$ for 15 min, but half of the activity was retained upon exposure to $90^{\circ}C$ for 15 min or $100^{\circ}C$for 10 min. BacBS2 inhibited L. monocytogenes by bactericidal mode of action. B. velezensis BS2 and its BacBS2 seem useful as biopreservatives for fermented foods such as jeotgal.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.1064-1079
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• 2018

In this study, the antimicrobial activity of a bacteriocin produced by Enterococcus faecalis KT11, isolated from traditional Kargı Tulum cheese, was determined, and bacteriocin KT11 was partially characterized. The results showed that bacteriocin KT11 was antagonistically effective against various Gram-positive and Gram-negative test bacteria, including vancomycin- and/or methicillin-resistant bacteria. The activity of bacteriocin KT11 was completely abolished after treatment with proteolytic enzymes (proteinase K, ${\alpha}$-chymotrypsin, protease and trypsin), which demonstrates the proteinaceous nature of this bacteriocin. Additionally, bacteriocin KT11 remained stable at pH values ranging from 2 to 11 and after autoclaving at $121^{\circ}C$ for 30 min. In addition, the activity of bacteriocin KT11 was stable after treatment with several surfactants (EDTA, SDS, Triton X-100, Tween 80 and urea) and organic solvents (chloroform, propanol, methanol, ethyl alcohol, acetone, hexane and ethyl ether). Cell-free supernatant of E. faecalis KT11 was subjected to ammonium sulfate precipitation and then desalted by using a 3.5-kDa cut-off dialysis membrane. The bacteriocin activity was determined to be 711 AU/mL in the dialysate. After tricine-SDS-PAGE analysis, one peptide band, which had a molecular weight of ~3.5 kDa, exhibited antimicrobial activity. Because the bacteriocin KT11, isolated from E. faecalis KT11, exhibits a broad antimicrobial spectrum, heat stability and stability over a wide pH range, this bacteriocin can be used as a potential bio-preservative in foods. Additionally, bacteriocin KT11 alone or in combination with conventional antibiotics may provide a therapeutic option for the treatment of multidrug-resistant clinical pathogens after further in vivo studies.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.390-396
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• 2011

Lactobacillus sakei is known to be the most populous lactic acid bacteria in over-ripened kimchi. Twenty three strains of Leuconostoc species inhibiting the growth of Lb. sakei were isolated from kimchi and amongst these the Leuconostoc mesenteroides strain CK0122 exhibited the highest antagonistic activity against Lb. sakei. The culture supernatant of the strain CK0122 was fractionated by a molecular weight cutter and lyophilized. The fraction with a molecular weight of less than 3,000 Da showed antagonistic activity against Lb. sakei. The antibacterial activity of the active fraction was sensitive to proteinase K treatment, confirming its proteinaceous nature (bacteriocin). The crude bacteriocin was active in the pH range of 4 to 7 and extremely stable after 15 min of heat treatment at $121^{\circ}C$. The crude bacteriocin inhibited the growth of Bacillus cereus, Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Alcaligenes xylosoxydans, Flavobacterium sp., and Salmonella typhimurium.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.9
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• pp.1493-1501
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• 2015

A Bacillus species, EMD4, with strong antibacterial activity was isolated from ganjang (soy sauce) and identified as B. subtilis. B. subtilis EMD4 strongly inhibited the growth of B. cereus ATCC14579 and B. thuringiensis ATCC33679. The antibacterial activity was stable at pH 3-9 but inactive at pH 10 and above. The activity was fully retained after 15 min at 80℃ but reduced by 50% after 15 min at 90℃. The activity was completely destroyed by proteinase K and protease treatment, indicating its proteinaceous nature. The bacteriocin (BacEMD4) was partially purified from culture supernatant by ammonium sulfate precipitation, and Q-Sepharose and Sephadex G-50 column chromatographies. The specific activity was increased from 769.2 AU/mg protein to 8,347.8 AU/mg protein and the final yield was 12.6%. The size of BacEMD4 was determined to be 3.5 kDa by Tricine SDS-PAGE. The N-terminal amino acid sequence was similar with that of Subtilosin A. Nucleotide sequencing of the cloned gene confirmed that BacEMD4 was Subtilosin A. BacEMD4 showed bactericidal activity against B. cereus ATCC14579.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.609-616
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• 2011

In this study, a LCH1227 bacterial strain that possesses anti-listerial activity was isolated from fermented food and identified as Lactobacillus salivarius LCH1227 based on its morphological and biochemical properties, as well as its 16S rRNA gene sequences. Anti-listerial substance also inhibited the growth of various Gram-positive bacteria, such as vancomycinresistant Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus agalactiae, Bacillus cereus, Lactobacillus fermentum. The highest level of production of antimicrobial substances from L. salivarius LCH1227 occurred during the early stationary phase. The antilisterial activity was found to be stable over a broad range of pH values (2.0-12.0) and after heat treatment. However, it was inactivated by proteolytic enzymes, indicating its proteinaceous nature. The apparent molecular mass of the partially purified anti-listerial substance, as measured by Tricine-SDS-PAGE, was approximately 5 kDa.