• Molecules and Cells
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.635-640
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• 2009

Testis-derived germline stem (GS) cells can undergo reprogramming to acquire multipotency when cultured under appropriate culture conditions. These multipotent GS (mGS) cells have been known to differ from GS cells in their DNA methylation pattern. In this study, we examined the DNA methylation status of the H19 imprinting control region (ICR) in multipotent adult germline stem (maGS) cells to elucidate how epigenetic imprints are altered by culture conditions. DNA methylation was analyzed by bisulfite sequencing PCR of established maGS cells cultured in the presence of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) alone or both GDNF and leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF). The results showed that the H19 ICR in maGS cells of both groups was hypermethylated and had an androgenetic pattern similar to that of GS cells. In line with these data, the relative abundance of the Igf2 mRNA transcript was two-fold higher and that of H19 was three fold lower than in control embryonic stem cells. The androgenetic DNA methylation pattern of the H19 ICR was maintained even after 54 passages. Furthermore, differentiating maGS cells from retinoic acid-treated embryoid bodies maintained the androgenetic imprinting pattern of the H19 ICR. Taken together these data suggest that our maGS cells are epigenetically stable for the H19 gene during in vitro modifications. Further studies on the epigenetic regulation and chromatin structure of maGS cells are therefore necessary before their full potential can be utilized in regenerative medicine.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.195-202
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• 2011

Maintenance of adequate telomere length in developing cells is the most important concern to preserve the integrity of the genome. The length of telomere is strictly regulated by numerous telomere-binding proteins and/or interacting factors. Even though the expression of telomerase in the male reproductive tract has been characterized, developmental expressional profiling of telomerase and other telomere-associated proteins has not been determined in detail. The present study was attempted to examine expression patterns of catalytic subunit (Tert) and RNA component (Terc) of telomerase and two telomerase associated factors, telomerase associated protein 1 (Tep1) and TERF1 (TRF1) interacting nuclear factor 2 (Tinf2) in the testis and seminal vesicle of male rat during postnatal development. The real-time PCR analysis was utilized to quantify mRNA expression of molecules. The abundance of Tep1 mRNA in the testis and seminal vesicle was the highest at 5 months of age. Expressional fluctuation of Tinf2 during postnatal development was found in the testis, while expression of Tinf2 in the seminal vesicle was gradually increased until 5 months of age and then significantly decreased later. mRNA level of Tert gene in the testis was significantly increased at the adult and the elder, while the highest expression of Tert gene in the seminal vesicle was found at 5 months of age. Expression of Terc transcript in the testis and seminal vesicle was the highest at 5 months of age, followed by significant reduction at 1 and 2 years of ages. Such differential gene expression of telomere-associated factors and telomerase components in different male reproductive tissues during postnatal development indicates that maintenance of telomere length would be regulated in tissue- and/or age-specific manners.

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.229-234
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• 2008

We used serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE) approach to derive a profile of expressed genes of the posterior silk glands (PSG) and to create a reference for understanding gene cluster related to the mechanism of silk protein synthesis in the silkworm, Bombyx mori. We constructed a 3' SAGE library from the PSG of the fifth instar larvae of the silkworm. In total we obtained 2,406 SAGE tags, of which 682 were unique tags. Sorted by tag count number, 27 (4%) unique tags were significantly more abundant genes (ten or more times), whereas 445 (65%) unique tags were detected as single copies. The annotation of 682 unique SAGE tags revealed that 462 (68%) of the SAGE tag sequences represented known genes, whereas 220 (32%) of the tag sequences had no matches in SAGE map and silkworm EST databases. Of the 682 SAGE tags, the most abundant tag sequences were that of the fibroin light chain gene and the silk protein P25. In addition, we compared two relative abundance results of the SAGE and the EST approaches to verify whether their transcript quantitative aspects are significant or not. The comparative results of relative abundances of the fibroin H-, L- chain and P25 glycoprotein genes indicated that the quantitative approach based on SAGE tags is effective for quantitative cataloging and comparison of expressed genes in same organs. The SAGE tag information reported in this study would be useful for researchers in the field to analyze genes associated with silk processing mechanisms of insects.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Plant Pathology Conference
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• 1995.06b
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• pp.55-75
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• 1995

Induction of HMG-Co A reductase (HMGR) is essential for the biosynthesis of sesquiterpenoid phytoalexins and steroid derivatives in Solanaceous plants following wounding and pathogen infection. To better understand this complex step in stress-responsive isoprenoid synthesis, three classes of cDNAs for HMGR (hmg1, hmg2, and hmg3) were isolated from a potato tuber library. The potato cDNAs had extensive homology in open reading frames but had low homology in the 3'-untranslated regions. RNA gel blot analysis using gene-specific probes revealed that hmg1 is induced by wounding but wound induction is strongly suppressed by arachidonic acid or by inoculation with Phytophthora infestants. In contrast, hmg2 and hmg3 are slightly induced by wounding and strongly enhanced by arachidonic acid or inoculation. The induction and suppression of HMGR genes parallel the suppression of steroid and stimulation of sesquiterpenoid accumulations observed in earlier investigations. Treatment of the tuber disks with a low concentration of methyl-jasmonate doubled the wound induced accumulation of hmg1 transcripts and steroid-glycoalkaloid accumulation, but did not affect the abundance of transcripts for hmg2 or hmg3 nor induce phytoalexins. High concentration of methyl-jasmonate suppressed hmg1 mRNA and steroid-glycoalkaloid accumulation, induced hmg3 mRNA, and did not elicit phytoalexins. Lipoxygenase inhibitors suppressed the accumulation of of hmg1 transcripts and steroid-glycoalkaloids, which were restored by exogeneous methyl-jasmonate. Methyl-jasmonate applied together with arachidonic acid enhanced the elicitor induced accumulation of sesquiterpenes and sustained steroid-glycoalkaloid levels with transcript levels for the various HMGR mRNAs equal to or greater than wound-only treatment. These results domonstrate that the consequences of wound- and pathogen-responses of plants are different at the levels of gene expression and associated secondary metabolism.

• Journal of Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.34-41
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• 2022

In vivo oocytes grow and mature in ovarian follicles whereas oocytes are matured in vitro in plastic culture dishes with a hard surface. In vivo oocytes show a superior developmental ability to in vitro counterparts, indicating suboptimal environments of in vitro culture. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of an agarose matrix as a culture substrate during in vitro maturation (IVM) on the development of pig oocytes derived from small antral follicles (SAFs). Cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) retrieved from SAFs were grown in a plastic culture dish without an agarose matrix and then cultured for maturation in a plastic dish coated without (control) or with a 1% or 2% (w/v) agarose hydrogel. Then, the effect of the soft agarose matrix on oocyte maturation and embryonic development was assessed by analyzing intra-oocyte contents of glutathione (GSH) and reactive oxygen species (ROS), expression of VEGFA, HIF1A, and PFKP genes, and blastocyst formation after parthenogenesis. IVM of pig COCs on a 1% (w/v) agarose matrix showed a significantly higher blastocyst formation, intra-oocyte GSH contents, and transcript abundance of VEGFA. Moreover, a significantly lower intra-oocyte ROS content was detected in oocytes matured on the 1% and 2% (w/v) agarose matrices than in control. Our results demonstrated that IVM of SAFs-derived pig oocytes on a soft agarose matrix enhanced developmental ability by improving the cytoplasmic maturation of oocytes through redox balancing and regulation of gene expression.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.368-374
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• 2011

The relationship between MDHA reductase activity and ascorbate, dehydroascorbate, and hydrogen peroxide content was evaluated, and this experiment was conducted to determine the change of MDHA reductase activity and the level of steady-state mRNA abundance of MDHA reductase in lettuce leaves subjected to low temperature stress. MDHA reductase activity of chloroplastic and cytosolic fraction in lettuce leaves subjected to $4^{\circ}C$ for 24 hr increased, followed by a steady decrease during the duration of recovery to $20^{\circ}C$ for 48 hr. The content of ascorbate slowly increased during low temperature treatment, followed by a rapid increase during the duration of recovery to $20^{\circ}C$ for 48 hr, while dehydroascorbate content rapidly decreased. The relationship between MDHA reductase activity of chloroplastic and cytosolic fraction in lettuce leaves subjected to $4^{\circ}C$ and ascorbate content correlated positively ($R^2$=0.9240, 0.9108, respectively), but MDHA reductase activity of chloroplastic and cytosolic fraction and dehydroascorbate were reversely correlated ($R^2$=0.8638, 0.8980, respectively). Hydrogen peroxide content and MDHA reductase activity of chloroplastic and cytosolic fraction in lettuce leaves subjected to $4^{\circ}C$ correlated positively ($R^2$=0.9443, 0.9647, respectively). Northern blot analysis showed that the level of mRNA transcript of MDHA reductase was similar to total activity of MDHA reductase, and also that the level of mRNA of MDHA reductase after recovery to $20^{\circ}C$ for 24 hr decreased.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.30 no.7
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• pp.625-629
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• 2020

The Ocean is a rich source of diverse living organisms include viruses. In this study, we examined the microbial communities in the sea adjacent to Jeju Island in two seasons by metatranscriptomics. We collected and extracted total RNA, and, using the next-generation sequencing HiSeq 2000 and de novo transcriptome assembly, we identified 652,984 and 163,759 transcripts from the March and December samples, respectively. The most abundant organisms in March were bacteria, while eukaryotes were dominant in the December sample. The bacterial communities differed between the two samples, suggesting seasonal change. To identify the viruses, we searched the transcripts against a viral reference database using MegaBLAST with the most identified being bacteriophages infecting the marine bacteria. However, we also revealed an abundance of transcripts associated with diverse herpesviruses in the two transcriptomes, indicating the presence or possible threat of infection of fish in the sea around Jeju Island. This data is valuable for the study of marine microbial communities and for identifying possible viral pathogens.