• Journal of Sericultural and Entomological Science
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.64-68
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• 2002

The antibacterial protein gene, nuecin was expressed in Sf9 cells using baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS). The antibactetial activity of mature nuecin against Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum, Ralstonia solanacearum and Pseudomonas tolaasii was significantly high, demonstrating that nuecin had a wider antibacterial spectrum on gram negative and positive bacteria. The result appears to be superior to other antibacterial peptide, attacin. The nuecin was purified by SP-sepharose and Mono Q HR ion-exchange chromatography, and then by Superdex 200 HR 10/30 column. The purified nuecin is quite stable at 80$\^{C}$ and 100$\^{C}$ for several hours of incubation and in a wide pH range (pH 2-12).

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.45 no.2 s.142
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• pp.121-128
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• 2007

Arthrostoma miyazakiense (Nematoda: Ancylostomatidae) is a hookworm species reported from the small intestines of raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes procyonoides) in Japan. Five Korean raccoon dogs (N. procyonoides koreensis) caught from 2002 to 2005 in Jeollanam-do (Province), a southeastern area of South Korea, contained helminth eggs belonging to 4 genera (roundworm, hookworm, whipworm, and Capillaria spp.) and cysts of Giardia sp. in their feces. Necropsy findings of 1 raccoon dog revealed a large number of adult hookworms in the duodenum. These hookworms were identified as Arthrostoma miyazakiense based on the 10 articulated plates observed in the buccal capsule and the presence of right-sided prevulval papillae. Eggs of A. miyazakiense were $60-65{\times}35-40{\mu}m$ (av, $62.5{\times}35{\mu}m$), and were morphologically indistinguishable from those of Ancyiostoma caninum. The eggs were cultured to infective 2nd stage larvae via charcoal culture, and 100 infective larvae were used to experimentally infect each of 3 mixed-bred puppies. All puppies harbored hookworm eggs in their feces on the 12th day after infection. This is the first report thus far concerning A. miyazakiense infections in raccoon dogs in Korea, and the first such report outside of Japan.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.308-314
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• 2017

Urotensin II (UII) is a mitogenic and hypertrophic agent that can induce the proliferation of vascular cells. UII inhibition has been considered as beneficial strategy for atherosclerosis and restenosis. However, currently there is no therapeutics clinically available for atherosclerosis or restenosis. In this study, we evaluated the effects of a newly synthesized UII receptor (UT) antagonist, KR-36996, on the proliferation of SMCs in vitro and neointima formation in vivo in comparison with GSK-1440115, a known potent UT antagonist. In primary human aortic SMCs (HASMCs), UII (50 nM) induced proliferation was significantly inhibited by KR-36996 at 1, 10, and 100 nM which showed greater potency ($IC_{50}$: 3.5 nM) than GSK-1440115 ($IC_{50}$: 82.3 nM). UII-induced proliferation of HASMC cells was inhibited by U0126, an ERK1/2 inhibitor, but not by SP600125 (inhibitor of JNK) or SB202190 (inhibitor of p38 MAPK). UII increased the phosphorylation level of ERK1/2. Such increase was significantly inhibited by KR-36996. UII-induced proliferation was also inhibited by trolox, a scavenger for reactive oxygen species (ROS). UII-induced ROS generation was also decreased by KR-36996 treatment. In a carotid artery ligation mouse model, intimal thickening was dramatically suppressed by oral treatment with KR-36996 (30 mg/kg) which showed better efficacy than GSK-1440115. These results suggest that KR-36996 is a better candidate than GSK-1440115 in preventing vascular proliferation in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and restenosis.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.48 no.5
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• pp.485-491
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• 2015

This study was performed to investigate thermophilic bacteria from soil having broad antifungal spectrum against Rhizoctonia solani, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Phytophthora capsici, Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici, and Botrytis cinerea. One isolate selected could resist heat shock of $60^{\circ}C$ for one hour, and had broad antifungal activity in dual culture assay against all tested fungal pathogens and was identified as Bacillus amyloliquefaciens Y1 using 16S rRNA gene sequence. Further investigation for antifungal activity of bacterial culture filtrate (BCF) and butanol crude extract (BCE) of various concentrations showed broad spectrum antifungal activity and fungal growth inhibition significantly increased with increasing concentration with highest growth inhibition of 100% against R. solani with 50% BCF and 11 mm of zone of inhibition against R. solani with 4 mg BCE concentration. Treatment of butanol crude extract resulted in deformation, lysis or degradation of C. gloeosporioides and P. capsici hyphae. Furthermore, B. amyloliquefaciens Y1 produced volatile compounds inhibiting growth of R. solani (70%), C. gloeosporioides (65%) and P. capsici (65-70%) when tested in volatile assay. The results from the study suggest that B. amyloliquefaciens Y1 could be a biocontrol candidate to control fungal diseases in crops.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.459-466
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• 2018

In January 2017, discolored black oat seeds were found in the storage depot of a farmhouse in Jeongeup. Pyrenophora sp. was detected in 45% of the oat seeds surveyed. All Pyrenophora isolates obtained from the seeds were identified as Pyrenophora avenae based on the sequences of internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA regions and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH) gene and validated by morphological and cultural characterization. A phylogenetic tree constructed using the ITS and GPDH sequences showed that the Korean isolates of P. avenae comprise of four genetically distinct groups. Pathogenicity test validated that the fungus is an infectious agent responsible for discolored black seeds and leaf blotch in oat plants. This is the first study report that P. avenae causes leaf blotch disease of oat in Korea.

• Biomedical Engineering Letters
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.399-404
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• 2018

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of a mobile wireless digital automatic blood pressure monitor for clinical use and mobile health (mHealth). In this study, a manual sphygmomanometer and a digital blood pressure monitor were tested in 100 participants in a repetitive and sequential manner to measure blood pressure. The guidelines for measurement used the Korea Food & Drug Administration protocol, which reflects international standards, such as the American National Standard Institution/Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation SP 10: 1992 and the British Hypertension Society protocol. Measurements were generally consistent across observers according to the measured mean ${\pm}SD$, which ranged in $0.1{\pm}2.6mmHg$ for systolic blood pressure (SBP) and $0.5{\pm}2.2mmHg$ for diastolic blood pressure (DBP). For the device and the observer, the difference in average blood pressure (mean${\pm}$SD) was $2.3{\pm}4.7mmHg$ for SBP and $2.0{\pm}4.2mmHg$ for DBP. The SBP and DBP measured in this study showed accurate measurements that satisfied all criteria, including an average difference that did not exceed 5 mmHg and a standard deviation that did not exceed 8 mmHg. The mobile wireless digital blood pressure monitor has the potential for clinical use and managing one's own health.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.432-439
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• 2021

Microbial community plays important roles in the culture environment of mud crab Scylla serrata. One of the environmental management efforts for the cultivation of S.serrata is by stabilizing microorganisms involved in nitrogen cycle process. The availability of dissolved inorganic nitrogen in its culture environment under a recirculating system closely relates to the nitrogen cycle, which involves both anaerobic and aerobic bacterial activities. Anaerobically, there are two major nitrogen compound degradation processes, i.e., denitrification and dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA). This study aimed to identify denitrifying and DNRA bacteria isolated from the recirculating cultivation of S. serrata. The water samples were collected from anaerobic filters called close filter system, which is anaerobically conditioned with the addition of varying physical filter materials in the recirculating mud crab cultures. The results showed that three denitrifying bacterial isolates and seven DNRA bacterial isolates were successfully identified. The phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene of the denitrifying bacteria revealed that HIB_7a had the closest similarity to Stenotrophomonas daejeonensis strain MJ03. Meanwhile, DNRA bacterial isolate of HIB_92 showed a 100% similarity to Bacillus sonorensis strain N3, Bacillus vallismortis strain VITS-17, Bacillus tequlensis strain TY5, Geobacillus sp. strain DB24, Bacillus subtilis strain A1, and Bacillus mojavensis strain SSRAI21. This study provides basic information denitrifying and DNRA bacterial isolates identity which might have the potential to be applied as probiotics in aquaculture systems in order to maintain optimal environmental conditions.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.161-172
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• 2021

This study was initiated to isolate the microorganisms removing phosphorus (P) from domestic sewage and to investigate the effects of environmental factors on the growth and P removal of the isolated bacteria. Microorganisms isolated from the sewage were identified as Chryseobacterium sp., Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, and Bacillus licheniformis. Among them, Bacillus licheniformis was selected as the P removal microorganism. The environmental factors considered in this study included initial phosphorus concentration, temperature, pH, and carbon source. At initial P concentrations of 10, 20, and 30 mg/L, the P removal efficiencies were 100.0%, 84.0%, and 16.5%, respectively. At 20℃, 30℃, and 40℃, the P removal efficiencies were 0%, 75.8%, and 60.6%, respectively. The removal efficiencies of phosphorus according to pH were 1.6%, 91.7%, and 51.1% at pH 5, pH 7, and pH 9, respectively. Using glucose, acetate, and glucose + acetate as carbon sources yielded P removal efficiencies of 80.9%, 33.6%, and 54.1%, respectively. Therefore, the results from the study demonstrated that the P removal efficiencies of Bacillus licheniformis were the highest when the initial P concentration, temperature, pH, and carbon source were 10 mg/L, 30℃, 7, and glucose, respectively.

• ALGAE
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.361-373
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• 2020

The community dynamics of benthic diatoms in the hypersaline environment are investigated to advance our understanding how salinity impacts marine life. Diatoms were sampled in the two salterns encompassing salt Ponds, ditches, and seawater reservoirs (n = 11), along the salinity gradient (max = 324 psu), and nearby tidal flats (n = 2). The floral assemblages and distributions across sites and stations showed great variations, with a total of 169 identified taxa. First, not surprisingly, higher diversity of benthic diatoms was found at natural tidal flats than salterns. The saltern diatoms generally showed salinity dependent distributions with distinct spatial changes in species composition and dominant taxa. Biota-environment and principal component analysis confirmed that salinity, mud content, and total nitrogen were key factors influencing the overall benthic community structure. Some dominant species, e.g., Nitzschia scalpelliformis and Achnanthes sp. 1, showed salinity tolerance / preference. The number of diatom species at salinity of >100 psu reduced over half and no diatoms were found at maximum salinity of 324 psu. The highest salinity for the observed live diatoms was 205 psu, however, a simple regression indicated a theoretical salinity threshold of ~300 psu on the survival. Finally, the indicator species were identified along the salinity gradient in salterns as well as natural tidal flats. Overall, high species numbers, varying taxa, and euryhaline distributions of saltern diatoms collectively reflected a dynamic saltern ecosystem. The present study would provide backgrounds for biodiversity monitoring of ecologically important microalgal producers in some unique hypersaline environment, and elsewhere.

• Advances in nano research
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.191-210
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• 2021

To compare the antifungal effect of two nanomaterials (NMs), nanoparticles of zinc oxide were synthesized by a chemical route and zinc oxide-based nanobiohybrids were obtained using green synthesis in an extract of garlic (Allium sativum). The techniques of X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Infrared (IR) and Ultraviolet Visible (UV-Vis) absorption spectroscopies and Scanning (SEM) and Transmission Electron Microscopies (TEM) were used to determine the characteristics of the nanomaterials synthesized. The results showed that the samples obtained were of nanometric size (< 100 nm). To compare their antifungal capacity, their effect on Cercospora sp. was evaluated. Test results showed that both nanomaterials had an antifungal capacity. The nanobiohybrids (green route) gave an inhibition of fungal growth of ~72.4% while with the ZnO-NPs (chemical route), inhibition was ~87.1%. Microstructural studies using High Resolution Optical Microscopy (HROM) and ultra-structural analysis using TEM carried out on the treated strains demonstrated the effect of the nanofungicides on the vegetative and reproductive structures, as well as on their cell wall. To account for the antifungal effect presented by ZnO-NPs and ZnO nanobiohybrids on the fungi tested, effects reported in the literature related to the action of nanomaterials on biological entities were considered. Specifically, we discuss the electrical interaction of the ZnO-NPs with the cell membrane and the biomolecules (proteins) present in the fungi, taking into account the n-type nature of the ZnO semiconductor and the electrical behavior of the fungal cell membrane and that of the proteins that make up the protein crown.