• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.228-235
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• 1999

Genetic diversity of ninety-five Korean isolates of Phytophthora was investigated on the basis of PCR-RFLP of ribosomal DNA. The isolates were previously identified as following fifteen species by mycological and cultural characteristics; P. boehmeriae, P. cactorum, P. cambivora, P. capsici, P. cinnamoni, P. citricola, P. citrophthora, P. cryptogea, P. drechsleri, P. erythroseptica, P. infestans, P. megasperma, P. nicotianae, P. palmivora and P. sojae. The regions of small subunit (SSU) and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) of rDNA were amplified with primer pair, NS1 and ITS4, by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and digested with nine restriction enzymes. P. boehmeriae, P. cactorum, P. cambivora, P. capsici, P. cinnamomi, P. citricola, P. citrphthora, P. infestans, P. nicotianae and P. palmivora showed specific band patterns for each species. However, P. sojae and P. erythroseptica presented identical band patterns and P. cryptogea, P. drechsleri and P. megasperma were divided into six groups, which were not compatible with delineation of the species. A group originated from cucurbits showed distinct band patterns from other groups, but the other five groups were closely related within 96.0% similarity, forming one complex group. Consequently, Korean isolates of Phytophthora were divided into thirteen genetic groups and each group was readily differentiated by comparing digestion patterns of AvaII, HaeIII, MboI, HhaI and MspI. Therefore, PCR-RFLP of rDNA using the five enzymes can be used to differentiate or identify the Phytophthora species reported in Korea so far.

• ALGAE
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.237-241
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• 2011

The toxic dinoflagellate Karlodinium veneficum has been implicated in numerous fish kill events around the world. Since this species commonly co-occurs with other morphologically similar dinoflagellates, field monitoring of this species in natural waters via light microscopy only has been problematic. In this study, we investigated temporal changes in K. veneficum's abundance in the waters of Obido, Tongyeong, using a species-specific real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay. The field survey, from April to December 2010, revealed K. veneficum occurred at low densities (12 to 425 cells $L^{-1}$) during this time and that cell numbers peaked in June (early summer in Korea), indicating this species generally occurs in the warmer season (mostly at $16.9-22.3^{\circ}C$ and 33.4-34.5‰) in the Obido area.

• ALGAE
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.281-291
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• 2022

Quantifying the abundance of Chattonella species is necessary to effectively manage the threats from ichthyotoxic raphidophytes, which can cause large-scale mortality of aquacultured fish in temperate waters. The identification and cell counting of Chattonella species have been conducted primarily on living cells without fixation by light microscopy because routine fixatives do not retain their morphological features. Species belonging to the Chattonella marina complex, including C. marina and C. marina var. ovata, had high genetic similarities and the lack of clear morphological delimitations between the species. To estimate the abundance of C. marina complex in marine plankton samples, we developed a protocol based on the droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) assay, with C. marina complex-specific primers targeting the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the rDNA. Cell abundance of the C. marina complex can be determined using the ITS copy number per cell, ranging from 25 ± 1 for C. marina to 112 ± 7 for C. marina var. ovata. There were no significant differences in ITS copies estimated by the ddPCR assay between environmental DNA samples from various localities spiked with the same number of cells of culture strains. This approach can be employed to improve the monitoring efficiency of various marine protists and to support the implementation of management for harmful algal blooms, which are difficult to analyze using microscopy alone.

• Korean Journal of Animal Reproduction
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.323-331
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• 1996

Predetermination of sex in mammalian species has many aspects of application including the prenatal diagnoses of genetic disorders in humans and sex-selected breeding programs in the animal industry. Embryos sexing can be carried out using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to amplify specific sequences present in the sex chromosomes, or by fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) of specific probes to the X and Y chromosomes. A 3.3 kb porcine male-specific DNA fragment (pEM39) was cloned previously in our laboratory. In this study, FISH and PCR methods were employed to examine if the pEM39 can be used a sex-specific DNA probes Porcine ovaries were obtained from a local slaughter house and oocytes collected. All oocytes were subjected to in vitro maturation followed by 1n vitro fertilization. Parthenogenetically activated embryos were served as a negative control. Embryonic samples were collected at the 2-cell stages and PCR was performed to analyze DNA. Among 10 embryos examined, four embryos were identified as males and six were females. The cloned male-specific DNA fragment showed male-specificity for the cells in the liver tissue and the porcine early embryos by FISH. It was also demonstrated that the cloned male-specific DNA is localized on the hetero chromatic region of the long arm in the Y chrom-osome (Yq) as shown by the FISH and karyotyping. The results suggest that the cloned male-specific DNA fragment may be useful for predetermination of sex with a few embryonic cells. The porcine male-specific sequence can be a reliable index for embryo sexing by PCR.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.24-29
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• 2007

A total of 35 strains of Ralstonia solanacearum isolated from wilted pepper and tomato plants in Korea were analyzed for their genetic diversity by bacteriological, pathological and molecular biological approaches. All the strains were identified as R. solanacearum biovar 4 on the basis of physiological and biochemical tests, and species-specific PCR primers. Pathogenicity of the strains was confirmed by inoculating on 4-week-old pepper and tomato seedlings. Using cluster analysis based on repetitive sequence-based polymerase chain reaction (rep-PCR) genomic fingerprints, R. solanacearum strains isolated from pepper and tomato in Korea divided into 6 groups showing a high degree of genetic diversity at 55% similarity level. The genetic diversify of strains was not significantly correlated with their geographic origins and host plants.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.193-206
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• 2022

Astringent persimmon (Diospyros kaki Thunb.) is an important fruit crop in Korea; it possesses significant medicinal potential. However, knowledge regarding the pathogens affecting this crop, particularly, viruses and viroids, is limited. In the present study, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and high-throughput transcriptome sequencing (HTS) were used to investigate the viruses and viroids infecting astringent persimmons cultivated in Korea. A one-step multiplex RT-PCR (mRT-PCR) method for the simultaneous detection of the pathogens was developed by designing species-specific primers and selecting the primer pairs via combination and detection limit testing. Seven of the sixteen cultivars tested were found to be infection-free. The RT-PCR and HTS analyses identified two viruses and one viroid in the infected samples (n = 51/100 samples collected from 16 cultivars). The incidence of single infections (n = 39/51) was higher than that of mixed infections (n = 12/51); the infection rate of the Persimmon cryptic virus was the highest (n = 31/39). Comparison of the monoplex and mRT-PCR results using randomly selected samples confirmed the efficiency of mRT-PCR for the identification of pathogens. Collectively, the present study provides useful resources for developing disease-free seedlings; further, the developed mRT-PCR method can be extended to investigate pathogens in other woody plants.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.194-202
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• 2022

Erwinia amylovora and Erwinia pyrifoliae cause fire blight and black-shoot blight, respectively, in apples and pears. E. pyrifoliae is less pathogenic and has a narrower host range than that of E. amylovora. Fire blight and black-shoot blight exhibit similar symptoms, making it difficult to distinguish one bacterial disease from the other. Molecular tools that differentiate fire blight from black-shoot blight could guide in the implementation of appropriate management strategies to control both diseases. In this study, a primer set was developed to detect and distinguish E. amylovora from E. pyrifoliae by conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The primers produced amplicons of different sizes that were specific to each bacterial species. PCR products from E. amylovora and E. pyrifoliae cells at concentrations of 10⁴ cfu/ml and 10⁷ cfu/ml, respectively, were amplified, which demonstrated sufficient primer detection sensitivity. This primer set provides a simple molecular tool to distinguish between two types of bacterial diseases with similar symptoms.

• Journal of Industrial Technology
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• v.28 no.A
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• pp.141-147
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• 2008

Several contaminated bacteria such as Lactobacillus brevis and Pediococcus damnosus in beer production cause beer spoilage by producing off flavours and turbidity. Detection of these organisms is complicated by the strict anaerobic conditions and lengthy incubation times required for their cultivation, consequently there is a need for more rapid detection methods. Recently, two contaminated strains were isolated from vessel of beer production and identified as Lactobacillus species by API kit identificaton as well as 16S-23S ITS sequencing analyses. Two isolated strains were named as Lactobacillus sp. HLA1 and Lactobacillus HLB2, respectively. A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method was developed for the rapid and specific detection of Lactobacillus sp.. Two sets of primer pairs (HLA1-F/HLA1-R and HLB2-F/HLB2-R) were designed for the amplification of a 1576 base pair (bp) fragment of the HLA1 16S-23S rRNA gene and 1888 bp fragement of the HLB2 16S-23S rRNA. Amplified PCR products were highly specific to detect corresponding bacteria when other contaminated strains were used as PCR templates. However, detection of both strains were limited when $100{\mu}{\ell}$ of cultured samples were mixed with $100m{\ell}$ of beer sample in arbitrary manner. The sensitivity of the assay still needs to be improved for direct detection of the small amounts of bacteria present in beer.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.732-739
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• 2014

We describe the development of a polymerase chain reaction method for the rapid, precise, and specific detection of the Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo) K3a race, the bacterial blight pathogen of rice. The specific primer set was designed to amplify a genomic locus derived from an amplified fragment length polymorphism specific for the K3a race. The 1,024 bp amplicon was generated from the DNA of 13 isolates of Xoo K3a races out of 119 isolates of other races, pathovars, and Xanthomonas species. The assay does not require isolated bacterial cells or DNA extraction. Moreover, the pathogen was quickly detected in rice leaf 2 days after inoculation with bacteria and at a distance of 8 cm from the rice leaf 5 days later. The results suggest that this PCR-based assay will be a useful and powerful tool for the detection and identification of the Xoo K3a race in rice plants as well as for early diagnosis of infection in paddy fields.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.329-333
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• 2001

Evaluation on the diagnostic performances of urease test and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for detection of Helicobacter species infection in dogs has rarely been performed in research with site-specific situations, although assessing diagnostic tests is an essential part prior to its practical use in a variety of clinical settings. The clinical value of a diagnostic test may be misjudged and comparisons between different tests may yield misleading conclusions when high within-patient correlations are present. We applied a conceptually simple statistical approach to estimate the sensitivity and specificity of urease test and PCR for detection of Helicobacter species infection in dogs. This approach assumes that responses from three different sampling sites within an animal are correlated where unit for statistical analysis is the site rather than the animal. The sensitivity and specificity of urease test was 0.74% (95% confidence interval, 0.64-0.84) and 0.87 (95% CI, 0.67-1.00), respectively. For PCR, the sensitivity was 0.95(95% CI, 0.89-1.00) and specificity 0.90 (95% CI, 0.70-1.00). Two tests were almost equally specific. Urease test, however, has a lower diagnostic accuracy and thus should only be used after careful validation in terms of sensitivity.