• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.14 no.10
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• pp.349-354
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• 2016

The emergence and dissemination of extended-spectrum ${\beta}$-lactamse (ESBL) producing Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates make it more difficult to treatment of bacterial infections. In our study, we detected ESBL genes and investigated antimicrobial susceptibility of K. pneumoniae isolates in Chungcheong province. In addition, clonality among the isolates was analyzed by repetitive element sequence (REP)-PCR. Twenty-one of 102 K. pneumoniae isolates produced CTX-M-14 and/or CTX-M-15 and showed high level (over 70%) resistance to third cephalosporins. CTX-M type ESBL producing K. pneumoniae strains isolated in our study showed diverse clonality and some of the isolates have been disseminated in the community. Enhancing infection control will be needed to prevent dissemination of the K. pneumoniae isolates. In addition, for more effective control of resistant bacteria it is considered necessary to monitor the database constructed through convergence of biological investigation and statistical analysis of antimicrobial resistance genes.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.476-488
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• 2021

Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris (Xcc) is the causal agent of black rot for cruciferous vegetables worldwide, especially for the cole crops such as cabbage and cauliflower. Due to the lack of resistant cabbage cultivars, black rot has brought about considerable yield losses in recent years in China. Understanding of the pathogen features is a key step for disease prevention, however, the pathogen diversity, population structure, and virulence are largely unknown. In this study, we studied 50 Xcc strains including 39 Xcc isolates collected from cabbage in 20 regions across China, using multilocus sequence genotyping (MLST), repetitive DNA sequence-based PCR (rep-PCR), and pathogenicity tests. For MLST analysis, a total of 12 allelic profiles (AP) were generated, among which the largest AP was AP1 containing 32 strains. Further cluster analysis of rep-PCR divided all strains into 14 DNA groups, with the largest group DNA I comprising of 34 strains, most of which also belonged to AP1. Inoculation tests showed that the representative Xcc strains collected from diverse regions performed differential virulence against three brassica hosts compared with races 1 and 4. Interestingly, these results indicated that AP1/DNA I was not only the main pathotype in China, but also a novel group that differed from the previously reported type races in both genotype and virulence. To our knowledge, this is the first extensive genetic diversity survey for Xcc strains in China, which provides evidence for cabbage resistance breeding and opens the gate for further cabbage-Xcc interaction studies.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.45 no.3
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• pp.219-226
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• 2007

Insertion sequence IS1112 is a repetitive element with a relatively high number of copies in Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo), the causal agent of bacterial blight of rice (Oryza sativa L.). Three new loci of IS1112 were identified in seven Chinese strains of Xoo using a single oligonucleotide primer J3; 5'-GCTCA GGTCAGGTGGCCTGG-3' by insertion-sequence-based polymerase chain reaction (IS-PCR). Among the three new loci of IS1112, two were located in the open-reading frame region of genes fhuA and cirA, which encode TonB-dependent receptors, and the third in ISXo2, another type of insertion sequence in Xoo genome. Three variants of IS1112 were identified in those three loci based on their sequence similarities: two were identical to IS1112a and IS1112b, reported in strain PXO86 from the Philippines, while the third was a new member of IS1112, defined as IS1112d. Inserting IS1112 in gene fhuA caused three bases, GGT, to be duplicated at the target site, but inserting it in gene cirA did not cause any duplication in the target site. The diversity of IS1112 sequence and insertion loci in Xoo genome and their potential effects are discussed.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.171-177
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• 2013

The dairy industry has consistently grown via the expansion of dairy-based food categories. Dairy product consumption is stable since the nutrient composition in dairy products is ideal for human health. However, dairy products are highly susceptible to food-borne pathogens. Controlling the safety of dairy products is thus important when considering the nutrient-rich matrix of this food category. Currently, immunoassays or molecular biology techniques have been used to evaluate the safety of dairy products in Korea. These methods are based on the detection of proteins and thus have low reproducibility and sensitivity. Recent techniques to detect food-borne pathogens have focused on genetic analyses. Rapid detection methods for food-borne pathogens in milk and dairy products using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques, such as conventional PCR, real-time PCR, repetitive sequence-based (rep)-PCR, PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE), and digital PCR, are reviewed in this article. The aim of this review was to contribute knowledge of the relationship between microflora and the quality of dairy products. This study will also assist in the immediate monitoring of food-borne pathogens in milk and dairy products when an outbreak related to this food category occurs.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.54 no.2
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• pp.187-190
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• 2016

Trichomoniasis is the most common curable sexually-transmitted infection (STI) worldwide. There are few reports on the prevalence of Trichomonas vaginalis in Korea. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of trichomoniasis by PCR in Guri city, Korea. All adult women who visited Hanyang University Guri Hospital for health screening within the National Health Care Service were invited to participate in the study, and 424 women were enrolled between March and June 2011. PCR was used to detect Trichomonas vaginalis using primers based on a repetitive sequence cloned from T. vaginalis (TV-E650). Fourteen women (3.3%) were found to have T. vaginalis. All were over 50, and they were significantly older on average than the 410 Trichomonas-negative women (mean ages 63.4 vs 55.3 years). It seems that T. vaginalis infection is not rare in women receiving health screening, especially among those over 50.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.43-47
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• 2013

This study was designed to evaluate the prevalence of ESBL genes and monitor antimicrobial resistance pattern in Escherichia coli, isolated from a hospital and a community. We tested 200 E. coli strains isolated in the hospitals and community in Chungcheong area from January to March 2012. Antimicrobial susceptibilities were tested by using the disk diffusion method. A search for ESBL genes was conducted by PCR amplification, and the genotypes were determined by direct nucleotide sequence analysis of the amplified products. An Epidemiologic study was performed by repetitive extragenic palindromic sequence-based PCR (REP-PCR). The percentage of ESBL-producing isolates was 17% for hospital associated E. coli and 11% for community associated E. coli. The ESBL gene sequencing results showed that the most common ESBL in E. coli was CTX-M-14 (19/28), followed by CTX-M-15 (9/28). The REP-PCR study also showed the genetic diversity, but there was no difference between the hospital and community associated E. coli. In this study, the most common types of class A ESBLs identified were CTX-M in the hospital and the community in Chungcheong area. ESBL-producing E. coli isolates showed diverse clonality.

• 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.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.88-107
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• 2023

In the present investigation, bacterial isolates from infected apple trees causing apple canker during winter were studied in the northern Gyeongbuk Province, Korea. The pathogen was identified as Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae (Pss) through various physiological and biochemical characterization assays such as BIOLOG, gas chromatography of fatty acid methyl esters, and 16S rRNA. Bioassays for the production of phytotoxins were positive for syringopeptin and syringomycin against Bacillus megaterium and Geotrichum candidum, respectively. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method enabled the detection of toxin-producing genes, syrB1, and sypB in Pss. The differentiation of strains was performed using LOPAT and GATTa tests. Pss further exhibited ice nucleation activity (INA) at a temperature of -0.7℃, indicating an INA⁺ bacterium. The ice-nucleating temperature was -4.7℃ for a non-treated control (sterilized distilled water), whereas it was -9.6℃ for an INA^- bacterium Escherichia coli TOP10. These methods detected pathogenic strains from apple orchards. Pss might exist in an apple tree during ice injury, and it secretes a toxin that makes leaves yellow and cause canker symptoms. Until now, Korea has not developed antibiotics targeting Pss. Therefore, it is necessary to develop effective disease control to combat Pss in apple orchards. Pathogenicity test on apple leaves and stems showed canker symptoms. The pathogenic bacterium was re-isolated from symptomatic plant tissue and confirmed as original isolates by 16S rRNA. Repetitive element sequence-based PCR and enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus PCR primers revealed different genetic profiles within P. syringae pathovars. High antibiotic susceptibility results showed the misreading of mRNA caused by streptomycin and oxytetracycline.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.157-159
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• 2012

The aim of this study was to assess the usefulness of PCR for diagnosis of Trichomonas vaginalis infection among male patients with chronic recurrent prostatitis and urethritis. Between June 2001 and December 2003, a total of 33 patients visited the Department of Urology, Hanyang University Guri Hospital and were examined for T. vaginalis infection by PCR and culture in TYM medium. For the PCR, we used primers based on a repetitive sequence cloned from T. vaginalis (TV-E650). Voided bladder urine (VB1 and VB3) was sampled from 33 men with symptoms of lower urinary tract infection (urethral charge, residual urine sensation, and frequency). Culture failed to detect any T. vaginalis infection whereas PCR identified 7 cases of trichomoniasis (21.2%). Five of the 7 cases had been diagnosed with prostatitis and 2 with urethritis. PCR for the 5 prostatitis cases yielded a positive 330 bp band from bothVB1 and VB3, whereas positive results were only obtained from VB1 for the 2 urethritis patients. We showed that the PCR method could detect T. vaginalis when there was only 1 T. vaginalis cell per PCR mixture. Our results strongly support the usefulness of PCR on urine samples for detecting T. vaginalis in chronic prostatitis and urethritis patients.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.68-74
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• 2011

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an aerobic, Gram-negative, glucose-nonfermenting bacterium, which has emerged as a serious opportunistic pathogen. Recently, outbreaks of carbapenem resistant P. aeruginosa give rise to significant therapeutic challenges for treating nosocomial infections. The genes of metallo-${\beta}$-lactamase (MBL), a powerful carbapenemase, are carried as a part of the mobile gene cassettes inserted into integrons playing an important role in rapid dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes among bacterial isolates. In this study, we investigated the prevalence of integron in imipenem resistant P. aeruginosa isolates. A total of 61 consecutive, non-duplicate, and imipenem resistant P. aeruginosa strains were isolated from a university hospital in the Chungcheong province of Korea. We employed repetitive extragenic palindromic sequence-based PCR (rep-PCR) method for the selection of clonally different P. aerusinosa strains. PCR and DNA sequencing were conducted for the detection of integrons. Twenty-one clonally different P. aeruginosa strains were isolated. Only one (P28) of the strains harbored $bla_{VIM-2}$ that was found as gene cassettes in class 1 integrons. Four of 21 carbapenem resistant P. aeruginosa strains harbored class 1 integron containing aminoglycoside resistance determinant. All of the integrons detected in the study contained more than one resistance gene cassette, which can mediate resistance to multiple antibiotics. To prevent further spreading of the multi-drug resistant P. aeruginosa, conseguent monitoring and clinical polices are required.