• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.232-237
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• 2008

Cinnamoyl-CoA reductase (CCR, EC 1.2.1.44) catalyses the reduction of cinnamic acid CoA esters into their corresponding aldehydes, the first step of the phenylpropanoid pathway specially dedicated to monolignol biosynthesis. A cDNA clones encoding CCR have been isolated from Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer and its expression was investigated in response to abiotic stresses. The cDNA, designated PgCCR which is 865 nucleotides long and has an open reading frame of 590 bp with a deduced amino acid sequence of 176 residues. The PgCCR encoded protein possesses substantial homology with CCRs isolated and cloned from other sources; the highest identity (51.8%) was observed with CCR from Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum). Under various stress conditions, expression patterns of the PgCCR were highly induced in adventitious and hairy roots by several abiotic stresses. These results indicated that PgCCR plays protective role against diverse environmental stresses.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.8
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• pp.1349-1360
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• 2015

The rhizospheric zone abutting plant roots usually clutches a wealth of microbes. In the recent past, enormous genetic resources have been excavated with potential applications in host plant interaction and ancillary aspects. Two Pseudomonas strains were isolated and identified through 16S rRNA and rpoD sequence analyses as P. fluorescens QAU67 and P. putida QAU90. Initial biochemical characterization and their root-colonizing traits indicated their potential role in plant growth promotion. Such aerobic systems, involved in gluconic acid production and phosphate solubilization, essentially require the pyrroloquinoline quinine (PQQ)-dependent glucose dehydrogenase (GDH) in the genome. The PCR screening and amplification of GDH and PQQ and subsequent induction of mutagenesis characterized their possible role as antioxidants as well as in growth promotion, as probed in vitro in lettuce and in vivo in rice, bean, and tomato plants. The results showed significant differences (p ≤ 0.05) in parameters of plant height, fresh weight, and dry weight, etc., deciphering a clear and in fact complementary role of GDH and PQQ in plant growth promotion. Our study not only provides direct evidence of the in vivo role of GDH and PQQ in host plants but also reveals their functional inadequacy in the event of mutation at either of these loci.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.249-256
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• 2016

This study was performed to investigate the effect of various concentrations of Diniconazole (DC) on the growth and quality of grafted tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) seedlings cultivated during the summer season. Concentrations of DC were set to 0 (non-treatment), 5, 10 and $20mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$, were treated once 3 days after grafting. Rootstock of the seedlings was shorter in the DC $5mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ and $10mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ treatment compared to the non-treatment, and the scions were significantly shorter in the DC $20mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ treatment. Seedlings were significantly shorter in the DC $20mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ treatment compared with the non-treatment. Leaf area was lower for seedlings subjected to all treatments than for seedlings in non-treatment group, and reduction was dose dependent. In particular, the DC $20mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ treatment inhibited both leaf and stem growth. The fresh weighs of leaves and stems of the seedlings treated with DC $5mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ and the fresh weights of roots subjected to all treatments were significantly greater than those of the non-treatment seedlings. Dry weight per organs of the seedlings treated with DC $5mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ was significantly greater that of the non-treatment seedlings, but the dry weight of leaves of seedling treated with DC $20mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ was much less than that of the non-treatment seedlings. The T/R ratio of the seedlings was lower for all treatments than for the non-treatment. The relative growth rate of the seedlings was significantly lower in the DC $20mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ treatment and, the leaf area rate of seedlings was lower in the DC $5mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ and $10mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ treatment than in the non-treatment. Therefore, the optimal concentration of Dinoconazole used to produce a suitable grafted tomato seedling in the summer season is $10mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ or less.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.235-243
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• 2014

This research was conducted to investigate the influence of leaching fractions (LF) in each irrigation or fertigation on plant growth and changes in chemical properties of root media during the production of seedling grafts of tomato. Two root media containing Sphagnum peat moss plus vermiculite (5:5, v/v, PV) and coir dust plus vermiculite (5:5, v/v, CV) were formulated and pre-planting fertilizers were incorporated during formulation. Then, each medium was packed into 50 cell (volume 33 cc) and 105 cell (volume 18 cc) trays and the rootstock (cv. J3B Strong) and scion (cv. Sunmyung) were grown, respectively. The seedlings were grafted at 31 days after sowing and then the cut seedling grafts (Sunmyung scion/J3B Strong rootstock) were planted into 50 cell plug trays containing each of the two root media. After induction of the graft union and new adventitious roots for 7 days, the seedling grafts were fed with fertilizer solution once a week containing 4 different N concentrations (0, 50, 100, $200mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$). When determined after 31 days from seed sowing, the highest fresh weights of the root stock seedlings were obtained with 0.75 LF in PV (8.96g/seedling) and CV (7.11g/seedling) mixes. The EC of the both mixes were 0.93 and $1.09dS{\cdot}m^{-1}$, respectively. The fresh weights of the scion seedlings 31 days after seed sowing were 4.29g with 0.50 LF in the PV and 3.13g with 0.50 LF in the CV. The root medium ECs of the two treatments were 0.76 and $1.34dS{\cdot}m^{-1}$, respectively. Fresh weights of the seedling grafts grown for 31 days were greatly influenced by post-planting fertilizer concentrations. The heavier plants were obtained in $100mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ N treatment than any other treatments in same mixes. The substrate ECs in these two treatments were 0.98 and $1.93dS{\cdot}m^{-1}$, respectively, indicating that the desirable range of soluble salts in soil extracts is higher in the CV mix than the PV mix. Results of this study suggest that optimum EC range is different in each medium and LF need to be adjusted differently for each root medium to produce high quality seedling grafts of tomato.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.31-38
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• 2004

An endophytic bacterial strain EB215 that was isolated from cucumber (Cucumis sativus) roots displayed a potent in vivo antifungal activity against Colletotrichum species. The strain was identified as Burkholderia cepacia based on its physiological and biochemical characteristics, and 16S rDNA gene sequence. Optimal medium and incubation period for the production of antifungal substances by B. cepacia EB215 were nutrient broth (NB) and 3 days, respectively. An antifungal substance was isolated from the NB cultures of B. cepacia EB215 strain by centrifugation, n-hexane partitioning, silica gel column chromatography, preparative TLC, and in vitro bioassay. Its chemical structure was determined to be pyrrolnitrin by mass and NMR spectral analyses. Pyrrolnitrin showed potent disease control efficacy of more than 90% against pepper anthracnose (Colletotrichum coccodes), cucumber anthracnose (Colletotrichum orbiculare), rice blast (Magnaporthe grisea) and rice sheath blight (Corticium sasaki) even at a low concentration of $11.1\;{\mu}g/ml$. In addition, it effectively controlled the development of tomato gray mold (Botrytis cinerea) and wheat leaf rust (Puccinia recondita) at concentrations over $33.3\;{\mu}g/ml$. However, it had no antifungal activity against Phytophthora infestans on tomato plants. Further studies on the development of microbial fungicide using B. cepacia EB215 are in progress.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.16-23
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• 2005

In order to develop a new microbial fungicide using endophytic bacteria for the control of anthracnoses occurring on various crops, a total of 260 bacterial strains were isolated from fresh tissues of 5 plant species. After they were cultured in broth medium, their antifungal activities were tested for in vivo antifungal activity against cucumber anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum orbiculare. As the results, liquid cultures of 28 strains showed potent antifungal activities more than $90\%$ against cucumber anthracnose. At 3-fold dilutions of liquid cultures, 18 strains inhibited the development of cucumber anthracnose of more than $70\%$. They were further tested for in vivo antifungal activity against red pepper anthracnose caused by C. coccodes and in vitro antifungal activity against C. acutatum, a fungal agent causing red pepper anthracnose. Among 18 strains, a bacterial strain EB215 isolated from cucumber roots displayed the most potent antifungal activity against Colletotrichum species. It was identified as Burkholderia cepacia based on its physiological and biochemical characteristics, Biolog test and 16S rDNA gene sequence. It also controlled effectively the development of rice blast (Magnaporthe grisea), rice sheath blight (Corticium sasaki), tomato gray mold (Botrytis cinerea), and tomato late blight (Phytophthora infestans). Studies on the characterization of antifungal substances produced by B. cepacia EB215 are in progress.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.331-336
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• 2004

The fungus genus Sclerotinia contains a number of important plant pathogens. Vegetable growers in our country are probably most familiar with Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, the causes of sclerotinia rot on crisphead lettuce. S. sclerotiorum has a wide host range which can include lettuce as well as crops such as broccoli, cabbage, carrots, celery, beans, peppers, potatoes, stocks, and tomato. Some fungicides, including benomyl, are effective in some crops, but not all. So, we isolated a antagonistic bacteria that are active on sclerotinia rot caused by S. sclerotiorum and that can be used to control it. About 702 strains had been isolated from soil around plant roots in the field. Ten strains showed strong antifungal activity against S. sclerotiorum. In pot test for antagonistic activity, A-7 strain showed high control value against the pathogen when compared with others. The strain was, therefore, selected as a biocontrol candidate against sclerotinia rot and its biochemical properties and 16S rDNA sequence was analyzed. The A-7 strain was highly related to Bacillus subtilis and B. amyloliquefaciens. To confirm precise identification, we had performed gyr A gene sequences analysis. Its sequence had 96% similarity with B. amyloliquefaciens. Consequently, the isolate was identified as B. amyloliquefaciens A-7.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.228-233
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• 2017

Six commercial rootstock varieties were tested for resistance to bacterial wilt (Ralstonia solanacearum) by dipping the roots of seedlings in the bacterial suspension at seedling stage. 'Shincheonggang' and 'B-Blocking' ranked top and second in resistance to bacterial wilt, respectively. For disease index of the grafted plants, 'Dotaerang' grafted onto 'Shincheonggang' was the least, followed by 'Ultra', 'Fighting', 'B-Blocking', 'Special', and 'Connection' grafts. Thus, disease development on the grafted plants was correlated with resistance of rootstocks. The effect of rootstocks on horticultural characteristics including days to flower of scion was minimum or negligible. In correlation between horticultural characteristics of rootstocks and scions grafted thereon, statistically significant negative correlation was observed in days to flower and fruit height but no significant correlation was observed in yield per plant, fruit diameter and soluble solid content in the fruits. Thus, selection of resistant rootstock varieties that support the growth and yield of scion well is necessary for effective control of the disease and yield increase.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.662-673
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• 2019

Root-knot nematodes (RKNs) are among the most destructive plant-parasites worldwide, and RKN control has been attempted mainly using chemical nematicides. However, these chemical nematicides have negative effects on humans and the environment, thus necessitating the search for eco-friendly alternative RKN control methods. Here, we screened nematicidal lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from kimchi and evaluated their efficacy as biocontrol agents against RKNs. Of 237 bacterial strains, Lactobacillus brevis WiKim0069 showed the strongest nematicidal activity against the second-stage juveniles (J2) of Meloidogyne incognita, M. arenaria, and M. hapla and inhibited the egg hatch of M. incognita. The culture filtrate of WiKim0069 had a pH of 4.2 and contained acetic acid (11,190 ㎍/ml), lactic acid (7,790 ㎍/ml), malic acid (470 ㎍/ml), and succinic acid (660 ㎍/ml). An artificial mixture of the four organic acids produced by WiKim0069 also induced 98% M. incognita J2 mortality at a concentration of 1.25%, indicating that its nematicidal activity was derived mainly from the four organic acids. Application of WiKim0069 culture filtrate suppressed the formation of galls and egg masses on tomato roots by M. incognita in a dose-dependent manner in a pot experiment. The fermentation broth of WiKim0069 also reduced gall formation on melon under field conditions, with a higher efficacy (62.8%) than that of fosthiazate (32.8%). This study is the first report to identify the effectiveness of kimchi LAB against RKNs and to demonstrate that the organic acids produced by LAB can be used for the RKN management.

• Korean journal of applied entomology
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.389-403
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• 2016

Sugar beet nematode (Heterodera schachtii Schmidt) was first detected in 2011, in Chinese cabbage grown in the highland areas of Korea. Chemical control of the nematode by nematicides is not feasible due to its cyst-forming characteristics; therefore, the cultivation of non-host crops is a preferable alternative to utilize nematode-infected fields. In this study, a total of 276 plant cultivars belonging to 18 different families were screened to evaluate their resistance to the nematode. Based on the number of cysts formed following nematode inoculation, the tested crops were classified into 3 levels: susceptible, moderately susceptible, and resistant/immune. Among the 276 cultivars tested, 106 cultivars were susceptible, 40 cultivars were moderately susceptible, and 130 cultivars were resistant/immune. Among the resistant/immune cultivars, cyst formation was not observed on eggplant, tomato, lettuce, perilla, carrot, celery, watermelon, oriental melon, cucumber, pumpkin, chives, onion, welsh onion, balloon flower roots, deodeok (Codonopsis lanceolata), Jandae (Adenophora triphylla), and bean. Therefore, these plants are regarded as immune to the cyst nematode. However, many crops belonging to Solanaceae, Asteraceae, Chenopodiaceae, and Poaceae families showed moderate susceptibility or immunity, depending on the crop or cultivar. This study provides a basis for alternative crop recommendations for sugar beet nematode cyst-infected farms in Chinese cabbage production areas.